Counterfeiter Sentenced to Five Years

A local woman was sentenced recently to five years in prison for her role leading a conspiracy to sell counterfeit computer equipment. 

Chun Yu Zhao, 43, led a "sophisticated conspiracy" to import and sell counterfeit Cisco-branded computer networking equipment, laundered criminal proceeds and obtained her citizenship through fraud, the Department of Justice announced. 

In addition to the jail time, , 43, will pay $2,709,238 in restitution, a $17,500 fine, and serve three years of supervised release after her prison term. Judge Gerald Bruce Lee stripped Zhao of her U.S. citizenship and ordered that her assets be forfeited to the United States, including: 

• four homes in Maryland and northern Virginia
• three condominiums in Chantilly with a total value of more than $2.6 million
• a Porsche Boxster, Porsche Cayenne and Mercedes sedan
• seven bank accounts containing more than $1.6 million. 

Zhao was arrested on July 22, 2010, by agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and has been in custody ever since. The U.S. Attorney's office said that she owned a home in Centreville but last lived in Chantilly. 

In May 2011, following a three-week trial, a federal jury convicted Zhao of 16 felony counts, including conspiracy to commit importation fraud and to deal in counterfeit goods, importation fraud, dealing in counterfeit goods, obtaining citizenship by fraud, making false statements to law enforcement and money laundering. 

According to court documents, Zhao and her family members and other co-conspirators in China agreed to lie on declaration forms and to sell shipments of counterfeit Cisco-branded computer networking equipment. Zhao and her co-conspirators used counterfeit labels and packaging to mislead consumers into believing that they were purchasing genuine Cisco products.

To evade detection, Zhao and her co-conspirators used various names and addresses in importation documents and hid millions of dollars of counterfeiting proceeds through a web of bank accounts and real estate held in the names of Zhao’s family members, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Zhao also fraudulently obtained United States citizenship based on lies on her citizenship application.

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