Singapore Prosecutes 4 Suspects in Scheme to Illegally Ship Nvidia Chips to China

(CNA Singapore, July 6, 2024, Reuters) Singapore is committed to combating the illegal transshipment of Nvidia chips to China. Prosecutors today indicted four key suspects involved in an AI server fraud case, with one also facing money laundering charges.

Bloomberg reported that Chinese-born businessman Alan Wei Zhaolun (phonetic) pleaded not guilty to the charges in court today, with his lawyer stating the accusations were "misguided."

His lawyer said Wei has been granted bail. Earlier in the day, Singaporean prosecutors increased his bail from S$450,000 to over S$1.2 million (approximately NT$29.73 million).

Prosecutors allege Wei made false statements and defrauded several major global server suppliers to obtain hardware containing Nvidia AI processors, which are subject to U.S. export controls.

The high-profile case focuses on whether Wei and other senior executives at Aperia Group falsely represented the end-users of AI processors, misleading Dell, Super Micro, and Asus.

This incident highlights how top U.S. chip technology is flowing to China and other destinations through Southeast Asian channels.

Prosecutors in this case have not charged Nvidia, Dell, Super Micro, or Asus. The investigation is focused on executives within Aperia Group and another Chinese national.

In a statement on July 1, Singapore police said that between November 2023 and February 2025, three senior executives at Aperia Group: Wei Zhaolun, Aaron Woon Guo Jie (phonetic), and Jenny Lim (phonetic), falsely told suppliers that one of Aperia Group's subsidiaries would be the end-user of the servers.

Woon and Lim also face fraud charges and have not yet indicated whether they will plead guilty.

Aperia stated yesterday that the group's companies and Wei are "fully cooperating with the authorities' investigation," and that "regrettably, despite their best efforts, the company still faces allegations of wrongdoing, which they deny."

Wei is accused of money laundering, involving the purchase of a S$55 million (approximately NT$1.36 billion) luxury home in a prime residential area of Singapore, with approximately S$38 million of the funds allegedly derived from illegal proceeds. Singapore police have prohibited the sale or transfer of the property.

In addition to Aperia executives, Chinese national Li Ming (phonetic) has also been charged with fraud for his involvement in a larger chip trade scheme. Wei's lawyer stated that Li's case is unrelated to Wei and Aperia.

Authorities indicated that Li made false statements to Super Micro twice in late 2023. He is the beneficial owner of Singaporean tech company Luxuriate Your Life, but he told Super Micro that he was merely an employee of the company, and also informed Super Micro that the company would retain the purchased servers and lease them to other companies.

If convicted, the four individuals could face years in prison, fines, or both. (Compiled by Chi Chin-ling) 1150707

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