U.S. charges 13 spies for scheming to advance China’s interests and recruiting informants

The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) on Monday charged 13 individuals for trying to “unlawfully exert influence in the United States” for the People’s Republic of China. 

The alleged spies are being charged as part of three different cases investigating spying schemes, announced Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday.

One of the cases involves seven Chinese nationals that tried to forcefully repatriate another Chinese national. Four others were charged for trying to recruit individuals in the U.S. to act on China’s behalf. 

Finally, two other men were charged with interfering with the criminal prosecution of the U.S. against a global telecommunications company. 

While the DOJ does not specifically name the company involved in the case, the details shared about the complaint about Guochun He and Zheng Wang match those of the prosecution of Huawei. The Chinese telecom company is being charged with stealing trade secrets and intellectual property information. 

The complaint states that He and Wang tried to recruit an informant by allegedly paying $61,000 in Bitcoin in exchange for confidential information about the prosecution of the company. However, the informant was a double agent providing false information under the direction of the FBI. 

“As these cases demonstrate, the government of China sought to interfere with the rights and freedoms of individuals in the United States and to undermine our judicial system that protects those rights. They did not succeed," Garland said. 

"The Justice Department will not tolerate attempts by any foreign power to undermine the rule of law upon which our democracy is based,” he added.