Qinliang Chen, a 34-year-old from Rosemead, California, has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced. Chen was among 12 individuals indicted in 2023 for their roles in a large-scale money laundering and drug trafficking operation allegedly led by Jin Hua Zhang.
Since 2021, Zhang’s organization has reportedly laundered over $25 million in drug proceeds and other illicit funds across U.S. cities and internationally, directing funds to Hong Kong, China, India, Cambodia, and Brazil. Chen’s involvement included transporting large sums of cash, with authorities seizing over $161,000 in vacuum-sealed cash from his rental car in September 2022. Zhang, who pleaded guilty in October 2024, awaits sentencing in January 2025.
