Two New Jersey Residents Sentenced for Helping North Koreans Secure Jobs at 100+ U.S. Firms in Major Scam

Two New Jersey residents have been sentenced to prison for funneling millions of dollars to North Korea. Kejia “Tony” Wang, 42, and Zhenxing “Danny” Wang, 39, were found guilty of helping North Korean citizens evade sanctions and secure jobs at American companies.

According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Tony and Danny aided North Koreans in securing jobs at over 100 U.S.-based firms between 2021 and 2024. As a result, the scheme generated over $5 million in revenue, which was laundered to the North Korean regime. According to officials, North Korea could be using the money to fund its weapons of mass destruction program.

Tony and Danny served as facilitators who helped North Korean IT workers pose as Americans to get remote jobs. Many of them had the opportunity to work for Fortune 500 companies. The facilitators stole the identities of at least 80 U.S. citizens so that North Koreans could pose as them and apply for jobs.

They also operated ‘laptop farms’ where they kept computers sent by U.S. companies. Tony and Danny connected these computers to specialized hardware that enabled North Korean workers to log in and control them from overseas.

To employers, it appeared the employees were working from home offices in the U.S. when they were actually in North Korea. Additionally, Tony and Danny created shell companies to collect paychecks without raising suspicion, but these companies existed only on paper.

The salary payments were sent to bank accounts managed by the facilitators, who then laundered the money and sent it to North Korea. Apart from generating $5 million for the North Korean regime, Tony and Danny collected nearly $700,000 in fees for their services.

The scheme also led to a major security breach, as one of the North Korean worker ended up working for a California-based defense contractor. The individual was able to access sensitive files related to the U.S. defense technology.

After the scheme was exposed, Tony pleaded guilty in September 2025 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to commit identity theft. Then, in January 2026, Danny pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Tony Wanghas now been sentenced to 9 years, while Danny Wang has received 7 years and 8 months in prison. In addition to their prison time, they were ordered to forfeit $600,000 that they earned through illegal means.

Talking about the seriousness of the case, attorney Leah B. Foley said in an official statement, “This case exposes a sophisticated scheme that exploited stolen American identities and U.S. companies to generate millions of dollars for a hostile foreign regime.”

“By operating so-called ‘laptop farms,’ these defendants enabled overseas actors to infiltrate U.S. businesses, access sensitive data, and undermine our economic and national security. The sentences imposed this week reflect the seriousness of this conduct and our commitment to holding accountable those who facilitate sanctions evasion and foreign threats from within our borders,” she said.