LOS ANGELES: A Chinese man who
duped more than 200 Chinese immigrants into paying him to join a
fake US army unit he created was sentenced Wednesday by a
California judge to three years in prison.
Yupeng Deng pleaded guilty to three counts: theft by false
pretenses, counterfeit of an official government seal, and
manufacturing deceptive documents.
He pleaded guilty separately to one count of possession of child
pornography, which police found after they executed a search
warrant at his home.
Under a deal reached with prosecutors, 10 of the original counts
against Deng were dismissed, Deputy District Attorney Lalit Kundani
told a court in Pomona, California.
Deng, who lived in the Los Angeles suburb of El Monte and called
himself the "Supreme Commander," was arrested and charged in
April.
He promised his recruits that belonging to his unit, dubbed the "US
Army/Military Special Forces Reserve unit," would eventually lead
to US citizenship.
The "recruits" in turn paid him between $300 and $400 to join, and
an additional $120 a year to maintain their membership.
The "soldiers" could rise in rank by increasing their
donations.
Deng gave his men uniforms and fake military identity documents,
and conducted drills and military-style training.
The "recruits" even participated in a parade and visited a military
museum in San Diego dressed in their uniforms.
"Yupeng Deng made a history of lying about himself," charged
Kundani.
"He called himself the 'Supreme Commander' when, in reality, he was
the 'Supreme Con Artist,'" Kundani said.
"He wanted to wear the king's robe, ride on the king's horse and
wear the king's crown, but he didn't have the courage to walk a day
in the king's shoes," Kundani added.
