A Chinese business leader has received a 25-year prison sentence for involvement in the trafficking of chemicals used to produce fentanyl, as reported by the US Department of Justice. Qingzhou Wang, 37, who served as the top executive at Amarvel Biotech, a company located in Wuhan, and Yiyi Chen, 33, the firm’s marketing manager, were found guilty in New York this February for importing fentanyl precursors and money laundering.
Judge Paul Gardephe of the district court handed Wang a 25-year prison term on Friday, while Chen was given a 15-year sentence on August 22. The actions of these executives turned a Chinese chemical company into a conduit for fentanyl, shipping large quantities of related precursors to the US, disguising them as ordinary items, and profiting through cryptocurrency.
The case involved eight Chinese nationals and four Chinese companies charged by the justice department in June 2023 for the trafficking of fentanyl precursor chemicals to the US. This marks the first time the United States has charged Chinese entities for such activities within its borders, instead of these substances being funneled through Mexico.
Fentanyl, an opioid 50 times more potent than heroin and cheaper and easier to produce, has largely taken the place of heroin and prescription opioids in causing overdoses in the US. The June 2023 charges against the Chinese executives and companies led to protests from Beijing, which condemned the actions as an infringement of the basic human rights of Chinese citizens and companies. Despite Mexico being the primary source of fentanyl in the US, Washington has increasingly targeted China-based suppliers of these substances.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/19/chinese-executive-jailed-fentanyl
