Christina Chapman has been sentenced to 102 months in prison. She had been duped as part of a State-sponsored, sophisticated identity theft scheme that was supplying labour for North Korean citizens. Chapman was arrested in May 2024 and charged with conspiracy to export military-controlled technology along with three North Korean nationals. The conspiracy ran from around October 2020 until 2023. It reaped huge profits — monitored by Chapman — for Chapman and the foreign workers she helped bring to the U.S.
In February, Chapman entered a guilty plea to multiple counts. These charges consisted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering conspiracy. Chapman pleaded guilty to identity fraud against 68 American citizens. His advocacy unique to those identities landed his foreign workers jobs at over 300 companies, including sportswear giants like Nike and other Fortune 500 companies. The scheme brought in an estimated $17 million, all of which was eventually funneled back to North Korea.
Chapman ran “laptop farms” from her homes in Arizona and Minnesota. She used company-issued computers to log in and do her work. This made it seem like North Korean workers really were on the ground in the United States. She began checking out laptops to other countries—China, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, Nigeria. Perhaps most notably, she sent 35 packages directly to Dandong, China, a city located on the immediate North Korean border.
Chapman is required to forfeit the $176,850 she received while the conspiracy existed. Moreover, she will deprive $284,000 in earned profits that should go to the North Korean workers who produced them.
In a 2001 speech, U.S. Attorney General Jeanine Pirro outlined grave concerns about what Chapman was doing. Specifically, she highlighted that North Korea is a double-edged threat both abroad and on the home front to the U.S.
“North Korea is not just a threat to the homeland from afar. It is an enemy within. It is perpetrating fraud on American citizens, American companies, and American banks,” – Jeanine Pirro
Pirro underscored the frightening ramifications of Chapman’s case for US companies. Such an operation, he cautioned, if it were able to penetrate big companies that sit on top of the Fortune 500 list, could endanger any company at any time.
“The call is coming from inside the house. If this happened to these big banks, to these Fortune 500, brand name, quintessential American companies, it can or is happening at your company,” – Jeanine Pirro
While acknowledging Chapman has pleaded guilty, prosecutors continue to stress that she has no grasp of her wrongdoing. Aside from her getting dragged into the criminal conspiracy, her role is the most troubling.
“Despite entering a guilty plea…. defendant does not seem to understand the full extent of her culpability in the criminal conspiracy,” – Prosecutors
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) stressed that adversaries such as North Korea require assistance to carry out their plans. They emphasized that people like Chapman deliver that essential support.
“However, even an adversary as sophisticated as the North Korean government can’t succeed without the assistance of willing U.S. citizens like Christina Chapman,” – FBI
Surprisingly, Chapman argued in her own proceedings that she didn’t realize that what her conduct was helping an enemy state. However, law enforcement officials continue to insist that her participation was key in allowing this major security breach to even happen.