Over $470,000 in Cash Seized as Seven Chinese Nationals Face Charges in Multi-Million Dollar Drug and Human Smuggling Operation

Seven Chinese nationals have been charged in Massachusetts for their alleged roles in a multi-million dollar operation involving marijuana cultivation and distribution, money laundering, and human smuggling across New England. The arrests, primarily made on Tuesday morning, target a sprawling enterprise that allegedly used single-family homes as hidden grow houses in Massachusetts and Maine. Prosecutors assert that the scheme exploited the immigration system by coercing smuggled individuals into labor.

The criminal enterprise, active since at least January 2020, allegedly operated a network of interconnected grow houses in suburban properties across Massachusetts, including Braintree, Melrose, and Greenfield, and in Maine. Operators reportedly maintained contact through an "East Coast Contact List" of marijuana cultivators and distributors with ties to China. Jianxiong Chen, 39, of Braintree, is accused of being the ringleader, controlling multiple grow houses and serving as a central hub for the network's operations.

A significant aspect of the charges involves human smuggling, with prosecutors alleging that Chinese nationals were brought into the United States to work in these clandestine grow houses. These individuals were reportedly denied access to their passports until they repaid their smuggling debts. Special Agent in Charge Ted Docks of the FBI’s Boston Division stated: > "Equally disturbing is that Jianxiong Chen – the accused ringleader of this organization – is charged with paying to smuggle a Chinese national across the Mexican border to work at his grow houses."

Profits from the illicit marijuana sales, estimated to be in the millions of dollars, were allegedly used to acquire luxury homes, vehicles, jewelry, and to expand the criminal enterprise through real estate purchases. During searches in October 2024, law enforcement recovered over $270,000 in cash from Chen's Braintree residence and a Porsche in his driveway, along with Chinese passports. Additional searches of grow houses in Braintree and Melrose yielded over 109 kilograms of marijuana, nearly $200,000 in cash, and luxury items, including a gold Rolex watch valued at $65,000.

The seven charged individuals include Jianxiong Chen, Yuxiong Wu, Dinghui Li, Dechao Ma, Peng Lian Zhu, Hongbin Wu, and Yanrong Zhu. Six of the defendants were arrested, while Yanrong Zhu, 47, of Greenfield, Massachusetts, and Brooklyn, New York, remains a fugitive. U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley commented: > "This case pulls back the curtain on a sprawling criminal enterprise that exploited our immigration system and our communities for personal gain."

This investigation is part of "Operation Take Back America," a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at combating illegal immigration, dismantling transnational criminal organizations, and protecting communities from violent crime. The charges carry significant penalties; for instance, money laundering conspiracy can result in up to 20 years in prison, while bringing aliens into the U.S. carries a mandatory minimum of three years. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.