A Chinese company executive has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for trafficking chemicals used to manufacture fentanyl, the US Department of Justice has announced.
Qingzhou Wang, 37, principal executive of Wuhan-based Amarvel Biotech, and Yiyi Chen, 33, the firm's marketing manager, were convicted in New York in February of fentanyl precursor importation and money laundering. District Judge Paul Gardephe sentenced Wang on Friday, while Chen received a 15-year term on 22 August.
Drug Enforcement Administration chief Terrance Cole said: 'These executives turned a Chinese chemical company into a pipeline of poison, shipping hundreds of kilos of fentanyl-related precursors into the United States, disguising them as everyday goods, and cashing in through cryptocurrency.'
Wang and Chen were among eight Chinese nationals and four Chinese companies charged in June 2023 with trafficking fentanyl precursor chemicals into the US. It was the first time Washington had charged Chinese companies for trafficking such chemicals directly into the United States, rather than via Mexico, the origin of most fentanyl found in the country.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 50 times more powerful than heroin, and has largely replaced heroin and prescription opioids as a cause of overdoses in the US. The June 2023 indictment drew protests from Beijing, with the Chinese foreign ministry calling it 'completely illegal' and damaging to the basic human rights of Chinese citizens and companies.
