{"id":49825,"date":"2022-05-18T12:29:56","date_gmt":"2022-05-18T19:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=49825"},"modified":"2022-05-18T12:29:56","modified_gmt":"2022-05-18T19:29:56","slug":"u-s-citizen-and-four-chinese-intelligence-officers-charged-with-spying-on-dissidents-human-rights-leaders-and-democracy-activists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=49825","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Citizen and Four Chinese Intelligence Officers Charged with Spying on Dissidents, Human Rights Leaders and Democracy Activists"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Defendants Allegedly Conspired to Silence Critics of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) in the United States and Abroad<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"USA<\/a>A U.S. citizen and four officials from China\u2019s Ministry of State Security (MSS) were charged in an indictment, unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn yesterday, with conspiracy and other charges related to an espionage and transnational repression scheme.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to court documents, Wang Shujun, 73, of Queens, New York; Feng He, aka Boss He, of Guangdong; Jie Ji, of Qingdao; Ming Li, aka Elder Tang and Little Li, of Guangdong; and Keqing Lu aka Boss Lu, of Qingdao, allegedly participated in an espionage and transnational repression scheme in the United States and abroad. <\/span><\/p>\n

Wang was arrested on March 16, pursuant to a criminal complaint, and will be arraigned at a later date. He, Ji, Li and Lu remain at large.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"\u201cWe will not tolerate efforts by the PRC or any authoritarian government to export repressive measures to our country,\u201d said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department\u2019s National Security Division. \u201cThese charges demonstrate the Justice Department\u2019s unwavering commitment to hold accountable all those who violate our laws in seeking to suppress dissenting voices within the United States and to prevent our residents from exercising their lawful rights.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

According to court documents, Wang is a well-known academic and author who helped start a pro-democracy organization in Queens that opposes the current communist regime in China. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"However, as alleged, since at least 2011, Wang has used his position and status within the Chinese diaspora and dissident communities to covertly collect information about prominent activists and human rights leaders on behalf of the MSS and PRC. <\/span><\/p>\n

As alleged in the indictment, He, Ji, Li and Lu acted as Wang\u2019s handlers, directing Wang to target specific individuals and groups that the PRC considers subversive, such as Hong Kong pro-democracy activists, advocates for Taiwanese independence, and Uyghur and Tibetan activists, and obtain information on particular topics and matters of importance to the MSS.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>As alleged in the indictment, Wang communicated and provided information to the MSS, including to He, Ji, Li and Lu, by using encrypted messaging applications and emails, as well as during face-to-face meetings in the PRC. <\/span><\/p>\n

Wang would often memorialize the information he collected in email \u201cdiaries\u201d to be accessed by the MSS. These \u201cdiaries\u201d included details about Wang\u2019s private conversations with prominent dissidents, as well as the activities of pro-democracy activists and human rights organizations. <\/span><\/p>\n

A search of Wang\u2019s residence incident to his arrest revealed approximately 163 \u201cdiary\u201d entries Wang wrote to He, Ji, Li and Lu and other MSS officials, the indictment indicated.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"For example, in one series of communications on or about Nov. 22, 2016, Ji instructed Wang to interface with a particular attendee at an upcoming pro-democracy event and to \u201caccomplish the task\u201d assigned by the \u201cBoss,\u201d referring to Lu. <\/span><\/p>\n

Ji noted that the attendee of interest had contacts with \u201cTibetans, Uyghurs and Mongolians\u201d and wished Wang luck at getting \u201cgood results.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

In another exchange on or about Nov. 16, 2016, Wang informed Li that he \u201cjust finished chatting\u201d with a prominent human rights activist, noting that he asked the \u201cnecessary questions\u201d and received \u201ccandid\u201d answers. Li responded \u201cgreat\u201d and with a thumbs-up emoji, instructing Wang to write it in a \u201cdiary,\u201d according to the indictment.<\/span><\/p>\n

At least one Hong Kong democracy activist and dissident that Wang reported on to the MSS, identified as \u201cHong Kong Dissident #1\u201d in the indictment, was subsequently arrested by the PRC.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf anyone doubts how serious the Chinese government is about silencing its critics, this case should eliminate any uncertainty,\u201d said Acting Executive Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. of the FBI\u2019s National Security Branch. \u201cThe Chinese government\u2019s aggressive tactics were once confined to its borders. Now, the PRC is targeting people in the United States and around the world.\u202f The FBI and its partners remain committed to combatting transnational repression.\u201d\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to this conduct, the indictment alleges that Wang transferred and possessed telephone numbers and contact information belonging to Chinese dissidents to the MSS, as well as making materially false statements to federal law enforcement, falsely denying that he had contacts with PRC officials or the MSS.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Defendants Allegedly Conspired to Silence Critics of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) in the United States and Abroad A U.S. citizen and four officials from China\u2019s Ministry of State Security…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30152,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3255],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49825","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-federal-court"],"yoast_head":"\nU.S. Citizen and Four Chinese Intelligence Officers Charged with Spying on Dissidents, Human Rights Leaders and Democracy Activists<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Defendants Allegedly Conspired to Silence Critics of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) in the United States and Abroad A U.S. citizen and four\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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