A sophisticated scheme to pilfer rare and historical Chinese manuscripts from the UCLA library system has concluded with the sentencing of Jeffrey Ying, who received a year of home confinement and credit for time already served in custody.
The 39-year-old, from Fremont, California, admitted to the theft of a major artwork.
Ying pleaded guilty in October in Los Angeles federal court to one felony count. Restitution for the stolen items, which included a 1685 Chinese manuscript valued at nearly $16,715, will be determined at a later date.
Prosecutors detailed how Ying stole rare books and manuscripts worth nearly $216,000 from UCLA’s library between December 2024 and July 2025. His method involved renting the documents, transporting them to the Bay Area, and then returning a counterfeit manuscript in place of the authentic original.
Federal prosecutors noted that Ying typically traveled to China within days of these thefts.
Rare book heist busted
The investigation came after library officials noticed several rare Chinese manuscripts missing from the UCLA East Asian Library. An initial investigation revealed the books were last viewed by a visitor identifying himself as “Alan Fujimori.”
Due to their rarity and value, these books are not in general circulation and require reservations for checkout. UCLA staff later reported that the name Alan Fujimori was associated with a known book thief responsible for similar incidents at UC Berkeley.
During the investigation, law enforcement searched Ying’s Brentwood hotel room, uncovering blank manuscripts and paperwork designed to mimic the books he had checked out.
Investigators also found pre-made asset tags, consistent with those used by the university, which could be affixed to “dummy” books to facilitate the fraudulent returns, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Ying had also utilized UCLA’s interlibrary loan system to acquire books from UC San Diego and UC Irvine.
Upon Ying’s arrest in August 2025, authorities discovered a fraudulent California identification card under the name Austin Chen, alongside two library cards bearing the names Austin Chen and Jason Wang, believed to be aliases used by the defendant.
