FBI arrest two people on suspicion of operating illegal Chinese police stations in New York City’s Chinatown and for conspiring to act as spies for the communist government
- Lu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, are set to appear at a Brooklyn federal court on Monday
Law enforcement officials have charged two New York residents with conspiring to act as agents for China‘s government by operating an undeclared police station.
The US attorney for the Eastern District of New York confirmed that two residents have been arrested in connection with the station in Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood.
Lu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, were both arrested on Monday morning at their addresses in New York. They are expected to appear in federal court in Brooklyn.
Prosecutors say Jianwang tried to persuade a Chinese fugitive to return home, and continually ‘harassed and threatened’ the individual in 2018.
In 2022 China’s government asked Jianwang to locate a pro-democracy Chinese activist living in California.
The US attorney for the Eastern District of New York confirmed that two residents have been arrested in connection with the station in Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood
New York’s secret police station is above a ramen shop located on East Broadway between Chinatown and the Lower East Side and was opened on February 15
The pair admitted to the FBI that they deleted their communications with a Chinese government official after discovering they were under investigation.
The FBI also announced an additional two complaints in Washington, which is the firs time criminal charges have been brought in connection with such a police outpost.
One is reportedly against 34 members of Beijing’s Municipal Public Security Bureau, and another against a group of 10 people that includes eight Chinese government officials.
This is a developing story.
