The person at the center of this case
Six American companies and their proprietary information
Cold Case · Open
12 years waiting · since 2014
WEN XINYU
Justice for Six American companies and their proprietary information — the trail went cold in 2014, but the truth hasn't.
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Key leads to think about
🎯
suspect
Lead #1Wen Xinyu was assigned to control victim computers in the conspiracy—what specific technical role did he play in the network penetrations?
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evidence
Lead #2What proprietary information and trade secrets were successfully extracted from each of the six targeted American companies?
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person
Lead #3Where is Wen Xinyu currently located, and has he maintained any communication with co-conspirators or associates?
On May 1, 2014, a federal grand jury in Pennsylvania indicted five People's Liberation Army officers, including Wen Xinyu, for a sophisticated cyber espionage campaign targeting American companies. The conspiracy allegedly involved unauthorized access to computer networks of six U.S. firms engaged in negotiations or disputes with Chinese state-owned enterprises, resulting in the theft of proprietary information and trade secrets including nuclear plant design specifications. Wen Xinyu remains at large, and the case highlights ongoing concerns about state-sponsored cyber theft and economic espionage.
Case
#633
Western District of Pennsylvania (jurisdiction); victim companies across United States
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S. Department of Justice, Western District of Pennsylvania
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More leads to consider
Beyond the top three above — each detail below could be the thread that pulls this case open.
💡
clue
Lead #4How did the PLA officers identify and select the six target companies, and what intelligence guided their targeting decisions?
⏰
timeline
Lead #5Over what time period did the unauthorized computer access and data theft occur, and when were the intrusions first detected?
Have information about any of these leads?
Even the smallest detail could be the key to solving this case.
Official wording
Source Narrative
Conspiring to Commit Computer Fraud; Accessing a Computer Without Authorization for the Purpose of Commercial Advantage and Private Financial Gain; Damaging Computers Through the Transmission of Code and Commands; Aggravated Identity Theft; Economic Espionage; Theft of Trade Secrets Caution: On May 1, 2014, a grand jury in the Western District of Pennsylvania indicted five members of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for 31 criminal counts, including: conspiring to commit computer fraud; accessing a computer without authorization for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain; damaging computers through the transmission of code and commands; aggravated identity theft; economic espionage; and theft of trade secrets. The subjects, including Wen Xinyu, were officers of the PRC’s Third Department of the General Staff Department of the People’s Liberation Army (3PLA), Second Bureau, Third Office, Military Unit Cover Designator (MUCD) 61398, at some point during the investigation.
The activities executed by each of these individuals allegedly involved in the conspiracy varied according to his specialties. Each provided his individual expertise to an alleged conspiracy to penetrate the computer networks of six American companies while those companies were engaged in negotiations or joint ventures or were pursuing legal action with, or against, state-owned enterprises in China.
They then used their illegal access to allegedly steal proprietary information including, for instance, e-mail exchanges among company employees and trade secrets related to technical specifications for nuclear plant designs. Wen controlled victim computers.
Timeline of Events
🕵️
2014-05-01
Federal Grand Jury Indictment
A grand jury in the Western District of Pennsylvania indicted five PLA officers, including Wen Xinyu, on 31 criminal counts related to computer fraud, unauthorized access, identity theft, economic espionage, and theft of trade secrets.
Case Information
Incident:May 1, 2014
Last Updated:October 30, 2026
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Case Information
Incident:May 1, 2014
Last Updated:October 30, 2026