Chinese national pleads GUILTY to kidnapping Seattle-area restaurant worker involved in human smuggling scheme

A Chinese national involved in a human smuggling ring pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to kidnapping a Seattle area restaurant worker last year. The male victim failed to secure enough funds from illegal immigrants he helped traffic across the US-Mexico border for his boss's human smuggling operation. As a result, Ji Wang, 33, of China, and a "co-schemer" physically assaulted and abducted the victim from his workplace in Bellevue, a city located just east of Seattle, WA.

The men beat the victim, smashed his face into cement, and dragged him down a set of stairs after abducting him from Lao Ma Tou Hot Pot restaurant on May 27, 2023, the Department of Justice said in a press release. The victim, who has not been named in court documents but is also an illegal immigrant from China, sustained lasting brain damage from the attack, prosecutors said.

Witnesses observed the incident and notified the Bellevue Police Department. Officers told the victim's girlfriend, who arrived at the restaurant, to videocall the victim. Wang answered the phone and revealed his face. Police recorded the call and were able to obtain Wang's identity. Four hours later, police received a call from a Bellevue gas station clerk stating that a seriously injured man unable to speak English had entered the store and was in desperate need of help. Authorities transported the victim to the hospital in critical condition. He underwent immediate surgery to relieve the swelling and bleeding in his brain and remained in the hospital for several weeks, according to the Seattle Times.

The victim claimed that he was contacted by "snakeheads," or smugglers, who requested that he refer individuals to their business in exchange for a commission. The man told authorities that he consented to the position, but mistakenly collected $3,000 per individual instead of the intended $5,000. His role was to refer people from China who wanted to gain illegal entry to the United States via the southern border to the smuggling services.

When the victim failed to collect as high a fee as the smuggling group anticipated, Wang and the co-schemer traveled from Los Angeles to Bellevue to demand the funds. The victim told investigators that he and his girlfriend are both from China and were arrested by US immigration authorities in Jan. 2023 after illegally crossing the Mexico border into the United States.

The victim reportedly secured employment at a Lao Ma Tou Hot Pot restaurant in Los Angeles after the couple was released from US immigration custody. That's when he was first contacted by Wang and his partner and agreed to offer his services. After the victim was unable to come up with the $7,000 that he allegedly owed Wang, he moved to the Seattle area with his girlfriend and secured employment at another Lao Ma Tou Hot Pot restaurant in Bellevue. The man told police he had never met Wang or his partner before he was abducted.

Wang was arrested on May 13, 2024, in the Los Angeles area after sheriff's deputies located the vehicle used in the abduction. A warrant was issued on July 17, 2024, for the other man's arrest, whose identity has not been released.

The defendant pleaded guilty to one count of kidnapping in US District Court in Seattle as part of a plea agreement, which comes with an eight-year prison sentence. The Department of Justice said Wang is subject to deportation following his prison term. He is currently in custody at that Federal Detention Center in SeaTac, WA, jail records show.




The case was investigated by the Bellevue Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the US Marshals Service Task Force. Assistant US Attorneys Todd Greenberg and Cecelia Gregon are prosecuting the case.

Wang is scheduled to be sentenced on March 4 by United States District Judge James Robart. Despite the eight-year prison deal, the judge has the authority to inflict the heaviest term possible by law, which is a life sentence for abduction.