BOSTON, M.A. – A New Jersey man has pleaded guilty to helping North Korean operatives generate millions of dollars for the country’s weapons of mass destruction programs by posing as U.S. citizens to obtain remote tech jobs at major American companies, including a defense contractor, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, Zhenxing “Danny” Wang, 39, pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors said Wang participated in a years-long scheme that allowed skilled North Korean IT workers to secretly infiltrate U.S. workplaces using stolen identities and falsified documents.
U.S. Senior District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for April 14, 2026. Wang was indicted in June 2025 along with nine co-conspirators, including eight overseas operatives tied to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
Investigators said the operation was designed to evade U.S. and United Nations sanctions by embedding North Korean tech workers into American businesses. Those workers, posing as domestic employees, used fake names, proxy computers, and fabricated online profiles to secure remote jobs at more than 100 U.S. companies. Prosecutors said the effort generated at least $5 million in revenue for the DPRK and caused over $3 million in losses to U.S. victims.
Court documents show the infiltrators obtained access to sensitive employer data, source code, and even International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) information from a California defense contractor that develops AI-powered technologies.
From 2021 through October 2024, Wang and his U.S.-based associates allegedly hosted company-issued laptops in their homes to make it appear that the North Korean workers were physically located in the United States. The conspirators created shell companies—Hopana Tech LLC, Tony WKJ LLC, and Independent Lab LLC—to further disguise the scheme, opened U.S. bank and payment accounts to receive payroll funds from victimized companies, and funneled much of the proceeds overseas.
Prosecutors said Wang and his associates collected about $700,000 in fees for their services. One co-conspirator, Kejia Wang, pleaded guilty to related charges in September 2025.
The case is part of the Justice Department’s “DPRK: Domestic Enabler” initiative, which targets individuals and networks inside the United States that help North Korea evade sanctions and fund its nuclear and missile programs.
A New Jersey man pleaded guilty to aiding North Korean IT operatives who used stolen U.S. identities to secure remote jobs and fund Pyongyang’s weapons programs.
