A resident of a Los Angeles suburb was recently arrested on charges of creating a phantom army unit to extort money from Chinese nationals.
Deng charged each of the over 100 Chinese citizens $300 to $450 fee to join the fake unit that he called the U.S. Army MSFR (Military Special Forces Reserve unit).
![](https://images.assettype.com/tgdaily/2016-09/68b39d74-7500-4a50-8d13-cb5357f7f110/afghanistanusmilitary.png)
His recruits had to part with more cash if they wanted to be placed at a higher military rank than everyone else. The recruits were made to believe that joining the military was a fast track to US citizenship.
So elaborate was Deng’s scheme that it included uniforms for the recruits, falsified documents, fake military ID cards, a forged government seal, regular parades in an LA suburb and visits to the USS Midway carrier in San Diego (the USS Midway was decommissioned a while back and now serves as a museum).
Unsurprisingly, recruits were instructed to refer to Deng as “supreme commander.”
If found guilty of the charges, the 51 year old Deng faces up to 8 years jail time.
The District Attorney’s Office declined to reveal how Deng was smoked out, saying only that the evidence and all details will be discussed during the preliminary hearing.
[Via Reuters]