According to a Department of Justice press release, a federal jury found Shujiang Wang, a 75-year-old naturalized American citizen, guilty of acting as an agent of the Chinese government without notifying U.S. authorities.
The defendants posed as pro-democracy activists and collected classified information about members of a New York-based advocacy group and reported it to Chinese intelligence, the suit said. Department of Justice.
Since 2006, Wang has worked under the direction of four officials from China's Ministry of State Security to collect information on individuals and organizations the Chinese Communist Party considers subversive, including pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong and activists calling for Taiwanese independence, according to the press release. (Related article: Ex-CIA officer pleads guilty to spying for China)
A naturalized Chinese-American co-founded a “pro-democracy” group in Queens, only to be found to be a Chinese spy and the Department of Justice sentenced him to 25 years in prison. Law and order has prevailed again! #InternationalSecurity #Espionage #new york #spy #united states of america #Department of Justice https://t.co/xMvLCVMRM6 pic.twitter.com/QdN0t9ijSu
— Robert Morton (@Robert4787) August 6, 2024
“This defendant posed as a pro-democracy activist and infiltrated a New York-based advocacy group to covertly collect sensitive information about its members and report it to Chinese intelligence,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen.
Wang founded the Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang Memorial Foundation in Queens and used his position to conduct espionage activities. The Justice Department said Wang wrote about 163 “diaries” that detailed private conversations with Chinese dissidents and pro-democracy figures.
