The United States (US) has charged five people for working on behalf of China’s secret police, and stalking, spying on, and harassing Chinese dissidents.
On Wednesday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) stated that three individuals—Fan Liu, Matthew Ziburis, and Shujun Wang—had been arrested, while two others—Qiming Lin and Qiang Sun—remain at large. The DOJ accused the five men of perpetrating “transnational repression schemes to target US residents whose political views and actions are disfavoured” by the Chinese Communist Party (CPC).
Five Individuals Charged Variously with Stalking, Harassing and Spying on U.S. Residents on Behalf of the PRC Secret Policehttps://t.co/Hfsu13qdnJ
— National Security Division, U.S. Dept of Justice (@DOJNatSec) March 16, 2022
In one of the cases, the DOJ said the individuals “sought to interfere with federal elections” by orchestrating a campaign to undermine the congressional candidacy of a US military veteran who was also a leader of the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing. In another instance, three of the accused planted surveillance equipment in the workplace and car of a Chinese dissident living in Los Angeles.
If convicted, the accused could face jail time ranging from five to 20 years.
“Transnational repression harms people in the United States and around the world and threatens the rule of law itself,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen said. He noted that such activities are “antithetical to fundamental American values,” asserting that Washington “will not tolerate” foreign agents violating US laws.
“The complaints unsealed today reveal the outrageous and dangerous lengths to which the PRC government’s secret police and these defendants have gone to attack the rule of law and freedom in New York City and elsewhere in the United States,” stated United States Attorney Peace. https://t.co/YFhOGLBZG1 pic.twitter.com/lrtKfWdpnr
— US Attorney EDNY (@EDNYnews) March 16, 2022
“The US will not tolerate blatantly illegal actions that target US residents, on US soil, and undermine our treasured American values and rights,” Olsen warned. Echoing these concerns, Michael Driscoll, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officer in charge of the investigations, remarked that“transnational repression schemes pose an increasing threat” to US citizens who criticise the CPC’s policies.
The DOJ statement also noted that all of the arrested individuals worked for Chinese intelligence agencies, especially the Ministry of State Security (MSS). “The MSS is more than an intelligence collection agency. It executes the Chinese government’s efforts to limit free speech, attack dissidents, and preserve the power of the Communist Party,” Alan Koehler, an FBI counterintelligence official said.
Koehler also said that Chinese activities, more than just violating US sovereignty, has become a “national security threat.” He warned China and other foreign intelligence agencies against conducting such activities in the US and said that “their efforts at repression will not be tolerated within our borders.”
According to reports, the Chinese government has been stepping up efforts to infiltrate US government institutions and private companies. A 2020 report by CSIS notes that from 2000 to 2020, there were at least 160 reported cases of Chinese espionage against the US and over 1,000 cases of intellectual property theft committed by Chinese entities against US companies.
The report notes that 85% of cases involved Chinese agents trying to acquire US military and commercial technologies. For instance, in November last year, the DOJ convicted a Chinese spy for attempting to steal trade secrets from American aviation and aerospace companies.
Additionally, CSIS reported that while 32% of the people involved in spying for China were private Chinese citizens, 26% were non-Chinese actors, “usually US citizens recruited by Chinese officials.” For instance, in December 2021, the US convicted Harvard professor Charles Lieber for lying to the FBI regarding his work with the Chinese government and failing to disclose the salary paid to him by the Wuhan University of Technology.
The Chinese government has denied all accusations of espionage against the US.