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The number of undocumented Chinese immigrants entering the U.S. has been on the rise in recent years. They don’t always have to go far to cross American borders.
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A Chinese man was sentenced to federal prison for attempting to smuggle undocumented immigrants from his home country to the remote U.S. territory of Guam, federal officials announced on Tuesday.
Chinese national Zhongli Pang attempted to take advantage of a loophole that allows visitors from China to visit the Northern Mariana Islands without a visa, unlike Guam. The visa waiver encourages Chinese tourists to visit the Marianas, where a U.S. visa is not required. But Chinese migrants sometimes exploit the waiver and attempt to travel over 100 miles southwest by sea to Guam, where they can earn better wages but a U.S. visa is required.
Pang received a 3-month prison sentence for ferrying a dozen Chinese nationals from Saipan, the largest of the Northern Mariana Islands to Guam. The overloaded vessel, named Helen, ran out of fuel before reaching the island and passengers were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. prosecutors said.
The case out of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) represents the latest in efforts to stop illegal immigration into U.S. territories. America’s outposts may lie thousands of miles from the continental United States but for those fleeing the People’s Republic of China (PRC), they serve as a crossing in the middle of the Pacific.
“We will continue to target illegal aliens unlawfully traveling between the CNMI and Guam,” said Shawn N. Anderson, the U.S. Attorney for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. “The risk to personal safety is substantial. Those interdicted also face imprisonment and immigration penalties. We urge PRC nationals to fully comply with the CNMI’s parole program and return to China.”
The 36-year-old “Captain Pang,” as passengers called him, was sentenced to the brief prison stint after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and conspiracy to defraud the United States, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. He was also ordered to do 50 hours of community service.
Pang attempted to make the crossing from Saipan – the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands – last June, according to court filings.
An attorney for Pang did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Public Safety for the Northern Mariana Islands investigated the case.
How they tried smuggling in
The route Pang followed is a common human trafficking route in the remote U.S. territories, according to Homeland Security Investigations.
Smugglers tend to use small recreational boats for the 133-mile trip from Saipan to Guam. According to a federal analysis of trafficking in the region, undocumented immigrants often pool their money to buy the craft – usually in the Northern Mariana Islands – where a spot on board costs between $3,000 and $5,000.
Pang and the Chinese nationals he worked with bought the vessel, Helen, for $33,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Guam is an attractive destination because wages are better compared to many other places in the region. Immigrants aiming to get to Guam illegally will often first go to the Northern Mariana Islands, according to Homeland Security, where visitors from some countries – including China – don’t need a visa to enter.
Smuggling boats typically land at secluded beaches, Homeland Security said.
Why Guam is attractive for some wage earners
Debates over immigration tend to focus on immigrants arriving at the U.S. southern border from Latin America and the Caribbean. But people from around the world are eager to make it into the United States and for those coming from the Pacific – especially Chinese immigrants – America’s remote territories offer a unique opportunity.
Just last month, Chinese national HongJiang Yang was sentenced after being found guilty of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and aiding and abetting transportation of illegal aliens, federal officials announced.
Authorities caught the 68-year-old trying to smuggle several other Chinese nationals to Guam from the Northern Mariana Islands. They were discovered off the coast of Rota – the island closest to Guam – after their overloaded vessel, like Pang’s, ran out of fuel, prosecutors said.
In February, another Chinese national – Kangle Jiang – was sentenced after pleading guilty to the same charges as Pang for trying to smuggle himself and seven other Chinese nationals to Guam from Saipan, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced.
“The arrest of Mr. Jiang exemplifies HSI’s commitment to enforcing federal immigration laws in an effort to prevent human smuggling,” said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Lucy Cabral-DeArmas then. “By going after violators like Mr. Jiang, we protect our communities by trying to prevent the inherent dangers posed by smuggling.”
Historic rise in undocumented Chinese immigrants
Undocumented immigrants from China have been entering the U.S. in historic numbers over the past few years.
Routes through U.S. territories in the Pacific remain a popular option but tens of thousands have been arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border where most immigrants enter the United States.
The number of undocumented immigrants from China arriving at the southern border jumped almost 1000% between fiscal year 2022 and fiscal year 2023, according to a Migration Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.
Some 24,300 Chinese nationals arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border for 2023, compared to 2,200 for 2022. Around 38,200 arrived in fiscal year 2024. The number arriving at the border with Canada also grew, nearly doubling from 6,700 in fiscal year 2022 to 12,400 for 2024, the nonpartisan immigration research institute said.
Researchers attributed the rise in undocumented Chinese immigrants to a flagging economy in China and social challenges stemming from the country’s strict measures meant to combat the spread of Covid-19.
The current generation of Chinese immigrants tends to rely on smugglers – whom they call “snakeheads” – for help crossing the border as well as tutorials found on TikTok, according to researchers.
What are the Northern Mariana Islands?
The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is one of five U.S. territories around the world. The 14 islands are located at the eastern edge of the Philippine Sea and together with Guam – also a U.S. territory – form the Mariana Archipelago.
Some 47,000 people live in the commonwealth, according to U.S. Census data, mostly on the islands of Saipan, Rota and Tinian.
The CIA says the islands are roughly two and a half times the size of Washington, D.C. They are located three quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines, according to the agency’s World Factbook.
U.S. officials began administering the islands after capturing them in World War Two, the CIA says. They became a U.S. territory and residents became American citizens in 1986.
Islanders cannot vote in presidential elections but they have been able to send a delegate to Congress since 2009.
Michael Loria is a national reporter on the USA TODAY breaking news desk. Contact him at mloria@usatoday.com, @mchael_mchael or on Signal at (202) 290-4585.
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