Mengying Jiang, 34, of Nashua, is one of three Chinese nationals to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Courtesy photo/Concord Police Department

CONCORD – Mengying Jiang, 34, of Nashua, is one of three Chinese nationals who recently pleaded guilty to being involved in a “large-scale fraud conspiracy based in China.”

His co-conspirators were identified as Naxin Wu, 26, and Mingdong Chen, 28, both of New York City.

According to court documents, Chen was arrested on Dec. 28, 2023 after using a gift card at Walmart in Concord. The card actually belonged to a man in Alabama. Wu and Jiang were arrested on March 5, 2024 following a similar incident also at Walmart. The trio was held on a $500,000 cash bail.

Police searched Jiang’s Harbor Avenue apartment on Jan. 4, 2024 and found 24 Apple iPhones, 35 iPhones, 15 iPhone Pro Max devices, a Google phone, ledgers and $27,750 in cash.

Jiang was ultimately responsible for $3 million in fraudulent gift cards. Wu was responsible for $1.4 million and Chen was responsible for $400,000.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, organized criminal organizations based in China obtain fraudulent gift cards by hacking into American companies as well as targeting U.S. citizens through romance schemes and elder fraud.

The gift card data is then sent to Chinese nationals who have set up operations in the U.S. New Hampshire has become particularly attractive as there is no sales tax. This allows the Chinese organizations to maximize their profits. The gift cards are finally used to purchase high-priced electronic devices.

The products are then shipped to China, Hong Kong and elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

Under federal law, Jiang, Wu and Chen each face up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000.

Wu will be sentenced on April 8, Chen on April 11 and Jiang on April 22.