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A 38-year-old man has been charged with committing a federal crime by stealing rare manuscripts from the library system of The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Jeffrey Ying, who also went by “Jason Wang,” “Alan Fujimori,” and “Austin Chen,” allegedly conducted a scheme to steal $216,000 worth of historical Chinese documents, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in a press release.
Ying, said to be of the San Francisco Bay Area, allegedly would take out the manuscripts on loan, bring them home for days at a time — then “return” the documents by replacing them with fakes.
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He would travel to and from China within several days of the thefts, the DOJ release said.
Library workers noticed that several of the rare Chinese manuscripts were missing from the collections — prompting an investigation that found the books had been viewed last by an “Alan Fujimori.”
Shown above in the distance, a view of one of the libraries on the UCLA campus. The Charles E. Young Research Library (YRL) offers advanced research collections. (iStock)
“Due to the rarity and value of the books, they are not in regular circulation in the library and must be reserved and checked out,” noted the press release.
Law enforcement officials tracked down Ying’s hotel room in Brentwood.
They found blank paper matching the style and manner of manuscripts he was checking out, the release said.
A man has been charged with an elaborate scheme to steal historical Chinese documents from the UCLA library system. Shown above is the Powell Library, the main undergraduate library on campus. (iStock)
Ying is currently in state custody, according to the DOJ’s release, and “is expected to make his initial appearance in United States District Court in Los Angeles” shortly.
Officials also discovered “pre-made labels known as asset tags associated with the same manuscripts.”
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It is alleged that Ying used the labels to create “dummy” books that he would return to the library in place of the real manuscripts.
In addition, a fraudulent California identification card under the name “Austin Chen” was found, as were two library cards bearing the names “Austin Chen” and “Jason Wang.”
A UCLA campus view, above. Law enforcement officials tracked down the man’s hotel room in Brentwood, finding blank paper matching the style and manner of manuscripts he was checking out. (iStock)
The UCLA Library system comprises one of the largest academic research libraries in North America.
It has 18 million titles in the library collection, according to its site.
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The FBI’s Art Crime Team is spearheading the investigation along with the UCLA Police Department.
Ying has been charged with theft of major artwork, which is a felony punishable by up to 10 years in federal prison.
Ying has been charged with theft of major artwork, which is a felony punishable by up to 10 years in federal prison. (iStock)
“A criminal complaint contains allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” the press release notes.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ and UCLA for further comment.