9 - Chinese Circuit Company uses Front in the US in Attempt to Illegally Export MMICs to AVIC in PRC

Yi-Chi Shih, a California resident and former president of Chengdu GaStone Technology Company (CGTC), was attempting to steal monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMIC) from a US based company to ship back to China for reproduction by CGTC. Shih used a front company he operated called Pullman Lane Productions, LLC. Pullman was being financed by the PRC government for the acquisition of MMIC technology.

Shih used an associate to pose as a US-based consumer of MMIC chips to gain access to the network of the target company. He planned to use the US-based company to transship the MMIC chips to the PRC, specifically the state-owned enterprise AVIC. The MMIC chips in question have dual use applications in missile guidance, radar, and electronic warfare. Kiet Mai, the associate involved in this front was also convicted of smuggling. Shih had Mai pose as a domestic consumer so they could gain access to the company’s web portal and take proprietary information and pass it onto AVIC.

Shih has since been convicted of conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Export Administration Regulations. He was sentenced to over five years in prison and fined $660, 000 for his plans to export the sensitive technology. Chengdu GaStone Technology Co. was also placed on the Entity List of the US Department of Commerce for illicit procurement.