Fremont man pleads guilty to smuggling illegal headlights into the United States
OAKLAND, Calif. - A Fremont man has pleaded guilty to smuggling illegal headlights into the United States, U.S. Attorney David Anderson announced Friday.
Chu-Chiang Ho, also known as Kevin Ho, 44, pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally importing high-intensity automobile headlights that failed to meet U.S. safety standards.
He admitted he has known since 2005 the headlights and other headlight kit parts he had been importing from China were illegal but continued to smuggle the items into the U.S. and sell them on a website for more than 13 years.
Ho also admitted that at least $1.7 million in sales proceeds from his business came from products that were illegally smuggled into the country.
He was indicted in 2019 on seven counts of smuggling illegal headlights and ultimately pleaded guilty to one count. The remaining counts will be dismissed if he complies with his plea agreement, prosecutors said.
As part of his agreement, Ho will forfeit at least $1.7 million in criminal proceeds and all of the property smuggled into the country. The maximum penalty for the violation is a sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.