Sister Ping

Sister Ping
鄭翠萍
Sister Ping, date unknown
Born(1949-01-09)January 9, 1949
DiedApril 24, 2014(2014-04-24) (aged 65)
Resting placeKensico Cemetery
NationalityChinese
Occupation(s)Red Guard leader, shopkeeper, human smuggler
Years active1984 until 2000
OrganizationFuk Ching (Snakeheads)
Criminal statusConvicted
SpouseCheung Yick
Children4
Criminal chargehuman trafficking, hostage taking, money laundering, trafficking in ransom proceeds
Penalty35 years in prison
Cheng Chui Ping
Traditional Chinese鄭翠萍
Simplified Chinese郑翠萍
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinZhèng Cuìpíng
Wade–GilesCheng4 Ts'ui4-p'ing2
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutpingzeng6 ceoi3 ping4
Sister Ping
Chinese萍姐
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinPíng Jiě
Wade–GilesP'ing2 chieh3
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutpingping4 ze2

Cheng Chui Ping (traditional Chinese: 鄭翠萍; simplified Chinese: 郑翠萍; January 9, 1949 – April 24, 2014), also known as Sister Ping (Chinese: 萍姐), was a Chinese woman who ran a human smuggling operation bringing people from China into the United States between 1984 and 2000. Operating from Chinatown, Manhattan, Ping oversaw a snakehead smuggling ring which brought as many as 3,000 Chinese into the United States, earning her more than $40 million.[1] The United States Department of Justice called Ping "one of the first, and ultimately most successful, alien smugglers of all time."[2]

Born and raised in Fujian province, Ping moved to Hong Kong in 1974, and then New York City in 1981. She was arrested in Hong Kong in 2000 and extradited to the United States in 2003.[3] In 2006, she was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison, and remained there until her death.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference fbi was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference DOJ-PR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Preston, Julia (2006-03-17). "Ringleader Gets 35-Year Term in Smuggling of Immigrants". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-05-23.