A Chinese citizen, Ji Wang, aged 40, residing in Los Angeles, has admitted guilt in a kidnapping case linked to human smuggling. This was announced by U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman following his plea in the U.S. District Court in Seattle. Wang was apprehended on May 13, 2024, in the Los Angeles area and identified as one of the individuals involved in the abduction and assault of a worker at a hot pot restaurant in Bellevue, Washington on May 27, 2023. Sentencing is scheduled for March 4, 2025, by U.S. District Judge James L. Robart.
Case records reveal that Wang was part of a group smuggling people across the southern border into the United States for payment. The victim referred Chinese nationals to this service and was tasked with collecting and transferring fees from those who used it. However, the fees collected were lower than anticipated by the smuggling group. Consequently, Wang and an accomplice traveled to Bellevue in May and forcibly removed the victim from his workplace.
The assailants physically assaulted the victim, dragging him down stairs after smashing his face into cement. Witnesses promptly notified Bellevue Police who collaborated with the victim's girlfriend to place a video call to his cellphone. During this call, Wang answered and revealed his face which allowed police to identify him.
Wang and his associate later abandoned the critically injured victim at a service station in Bellevue where he required emergency surgery for brain swelling and spent weeks hospitalized at Overlake hospital. The victim suffers from lasting physical and cognitive impairments due to the attack.
Under Wang's plea agreement terms, prosecutors will recommend a sentence not exceeding eight years imprisonment; however, Judge Robart may impose any sentence permitted by law as kidnapping carries a maximum life sentence. Additionally, Wang may face deportation after serving his prison term since he was unlawfully present in the United States.
This case was investigated by Bellevue Police Department alongside Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Marshal’s Service Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Todd Greenberg and Cecelia Gregson are prosecuting this case.
