Federal charges filed against Chinese national accused in global narcotics scheme
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas has filed federal charges against Chuen Fat Yip, a 68-year-old citizen of the People’s Republic of China, who is accused of taking part in a transnational anabolic steroid and fentanyl precursor chemical distribution scheme.
U.S. Attorney Chad E. Meacham said Yip was charged in September 2018 with five drug crimes, including conspiracy to import anabolic steroids, and manufacturing anabolic steroids and fentanyl precursor with the knowledge that they would be unlawfully imported.
The indictment against Yip and two co-conspirators was unsealed on March 11, 2021.
On Nov. 18, the U.S. Attorney’s Office obtained a seizure warrant for more than 49.1 bitcoin — currently worth approximately $2.3 million — from a crypto wallet that was traced back to Yip, Meacham said.
The U.S. Department of State is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of Yip or for information on Yip’s alleged transnational organized crime group, the Yuancheng (YC) Group.
According to court documents Yip, who is believed to reside in Wuhan City, Hubei Provence, PRC, allegedly owned and operated the YC Group, a chemical manufacturing company responsible for producing and distributing around $280 million worth of anabolic steroids — including $55 million worth of anabolic steroids shipped to the United States over a five-year period.
The YC Group allegedly used trade shows and websites, including including sellsteroids.com, steroidsmart.com, and pharmade.com, to advertise the sale of illegal controlled substances.
In October 2015, Yip, along with company associates, allegedly attended a trade show in the U.S. and negotiated transactions involving more than 220 pounds. During those meetings, Meacham said, they allegedly outlined steps for customers to take to avoid detection by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
The YC Group allegedly shipped parcels, weighing less than 110 pounds, of steroids and other controlled substances out of Shanghai or Hong Kong to locations around the globe, including 84 foreign countries and all 50 U.S. states. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, shipments were typically disguised in packaging intended to resemble other products, such as food.
The YC Group also allegedly agreed to ship around 53 pounds of a precursor for fentanyl, from the PRC to the United States, then to Mexico where it would be combined with other chemicals to produce fentanyl, then smuggled back into the U.S., where it would be distributed to dealers and end-users.
“[Yip] allegedly made millions manufacturing and distributing anabolic steroids and fentanyl precursors to American customers,” Meacham said. “The Justice Department will pursue drug defendants to the furthest reaches of the globe if that’s what it takes to stem the tide of the drug epidemic.”
Anyone with information on Yip, also known as Chuan Fa Ye, or the YC Group, is asked to contact the DEA at 1-972-591-1326 or by email at ChuenFatYipTIPS@dea.gov.
