CCP Fake Prodemocracy Activists Are Indicted In U.S.

On May 18th, a U.S. citizen and four officials from CCP’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) were charged in an indictment in federal court with espionage and transnational repression scheme.

According to court documents, indicted individuals included Wang Shujun and four officials from CCP’s MSS, He Feng, Ji Jie, Li Ming, and Lu Keqing. Wang Shujun, a 73-year-old American citizen living in New York, came to the U.S. in 1994 from Qingdao, Communist China, and worked as a visiting scholar. He has been active in the so-called pro-democracy organizations in the eastern United States and served as secretary-general in the Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang Memorial Foundation until 2020 since its establishment in 2006.

Since at least 2011, Wang started to engage in clandestine activities under the instigation and manipulation of officials from CCP’s MSS. His spying on sensitive reporting information directly caused the CCP’s arrest of pro-democracy activists in Communist China and Hong Kong. Wang targeted individuals and groups in New York and other regions that CCP considers subversive, such as Hong Kong pro-democracy, advocates for Taiwanese independence, and Uyghur and Tibetan activists. He directly communicated and provided information to the CCP’s MSS using encrypted messaging applications, emails, and face-to-face meetings in Communist China.

U.S. attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York believed Wang’s behavior has threatened the safety and freedom of Chinese nationals residing in the U.S. and affected their pro-democracy beliefs and speech. The U.S. does not tolerate CCP’s efforts to export espionage and repressive measures to the U.S. and will demonstrate unwavering commitment to thwart and eliminate these activities.