A New York man has been charged with acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government, the U.S. Justice Department said on August 22. Yuanjun Tang, 67, is accused of spying on pro-democracy activists and Chinese dissidents in the United States at the direction of China’s Ministry of State Security, Beijing’s top intelligence agency.
According to the indictment, Mr. Tang operated under the direction of the Chinese government from 2018 to 2023. During that time, he provided Chinese intelligence officers with information about individuals and organizations that the Chinese government considered “potentially detrimental” to its interests. In particular, he collected information about prominent Chinese dissidents living in the United States.
The Justice Department said Mr. Tang helped Chinese security services hack into a group chat on an encrypted messaging app used by many Chinese dissidents to communicate with each other.
In addition, Mr. Tang is accused of making false statements to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), claiming that he no longer had access to an email account that he used to communicate with Chinese security, an act that is believed to have been intended to conceal his espionage activities.
Mr. Tang, a former Chinese citizen, was detained in China for his dissident activities before being granted political asylum in the United States. He later became a U.S. citizen.
The Chinese Embassy has not yet responded to a request for comment, and attempts to reach Mr. Tang for comment have not been successful. The incident highlights concerns about foreign intelligence agencies’ interference in U.S. domestic affairs, particularly when it comes to espionage targeting dissidents and exile communities.