Alleged North Korea operative uncovered in the U.S.

well today police arrested a man living in California on suspicion of sending weapons to North Korea a newly unsealed criminal complaint that we brought you right here breaking on CBS News 247 reveals quite a story quite a plot here a Chinese man hid guns and ammunition inside shipping containers traveled from Texas to California shipped them off of the shores of Long Beach to North Korea that document goes on to say that North Korean agents funneled the man some $2 million to buy and then ship the weapons and other technology including reported uniforms that were I

guess planning to be used in an attack in South Korea federal law enforcement officials are calling this a significant National Security investigation let's listen in we're here today gathered with our law enforcement Partners to announce federal charges involving an individual who acted as an operative for the North Korean government in our country we are charging a criminal scheme involving this individual and officials with the North Korean government this criminal scheme involved obtaining in our country military supplies and high-grade technology and then sending those materials illegally to North Korea the person that we've charged is an

individual named shanga Wen he was arrested this morning we allege that he inspired with government officials in North Korea to obtain military supplies including firearms and ammunition to obtain technology and then conceal that technology and those materials in shipping containers that departed from the Port of Long Beach and then ship those materials onto North Korea all of this was illegal so much to cover here CBS News justice department reporter Robert leair joins us live Robert what more can you tell us about what law enforcement uncovered here hey y Reed thanks for having me well it's

important to note at the top here that according to the criminal complaint when the defendant who prosecutors were just talking about there admitted to this conduct in multiple interviews across the summer both August and September in a mirandi interview with Federal investigators admitted to a lot of this conduct he said he tried to obtain military uniforms an apparent attempt to help North Korean soldiers disguise themselves in what broser described as a quote surprise attack on South Korea that never materialized but according to prosecutors when sought to obtain these uniforms in furtherance of that plot according

to prosecutors when came to this country in 2012 on a student visa overstayed that Visa but before he got here they said he met twice with China with um North Korean government officials and they directed him to during his time here obtain and procure materials for North Korea in an attempt to then send the materials to North Korea prosecutor said that investigators when they searched W's home found multiple rounds of ammunition as well as some devices a device used to um uncover bugs in your home listening bugs in your home or an office and as

well as a chemical detector and so what they described here is a yearslong scheme uh by when to allegedly funnel funnel uh material in furtherance of North Korea's regime yeah when you really think about this it's pretty crazy I I listen to the same thing you listen to Firearms ammunition high-grade technology the chemical detection device the surveillance device that you mentioned but also this was quite chilling thermal imaging systems that were designed to be able to attach to planes talk to us about the uh the place where this operation was set up the state of

Texas because the headline is going to be Long Beach California that was the point of shipping but this has some derivations in the state of Texas as well yes so this is this is an operation that allegedly spanned across the country in some instances the weapons and materials were bought in Texas and then he um he allegedly brought them then to California to then ship them off and so prosecutors say that this has lasted a long time and um uh when was discussing what was needed by the North Korean government with his handlers in North

Korea so this not was not just someone who was thinking about what the North Korean government might might want he was being directed allegedly by officials in North Korea to send the materials from Long Beach to Hong Kong and then smuggle them from Hong Kong into North Korea and so this is a transnational scheme that prosecutors alleged SP multiple years and that Texas business purchased by North with North Korean money but also interesting to knowe these weapons were purchased under a federal firearms license what kind of drill down will investigators do knowing that these weapons

were obtained under a federal license right so you know federal federal law dictates that a lot of in certain instances Firearms have to be purchased under FFL a federal firearm license um and so in certain instances here the those Firearms were and the ammunition were purchased with that and so the questions will also be raised as to how he was able to obtain that we see in certain instances in which um foreign Nationals are able to obtain foreign uh excuse me foreign Nationals are able to obtain Firearms then prompts further investigation as to how they

did that and so to your point that is something that investig investigators are going to look into as well this is the first time that we've seen individuals within the US work on behalf of uh the North Korean government just earlier this year in May prosecutors with the J Department charged the women in Arizona with working um with North Korean IT workers to get them remote jobs here in the US to then funnel their money to benefit the North Korean government and so this is something that's happening across the country and prosecutors are are looking

into it now expanding this conversation out from what we see running from Texas into California and then off the shore is headed towards North Korea and those shipping containers does this rage larger concerns uh about the US and its involvement on the Korean Peninsula and sort of having eyes and ears up even larger than we have in the past to what North Korea is doing well what's really interesting here is that this is this is a North Korean government looking to obtain americanmade goods and so as as the viewers likely know right now is illegal

to ship things in support of North Korea fund um you know materials weapons money um so so what we see here is another scheme uh to support North Korea in that way and so this is really the federal government and particularly Federal investigators law enforcement components here in the US saying that they are aware of these operations and they're taking them seriously the geopolitical ramifications of this are likely not to be huge given the fact that this is one individual right now here in the US who allegedly took part in this but it is a

signal that the US government and federal investigators are sending to North Korea saying we know you are have agents operating here on us soil and we're going to do something about it all right Robert leer CBS News justice department reporter fascinating conversation and a story that reads like a Hollywood movie although it is all too real and now the feds have the charges to prove it