A man from New York was accused of spying on pro-democracy groups in the US on behalf of the Chinese government.
Federal prosecutors claimed that a New York resident has been secretly monitoring the US since 2018.
In New York, federal prosecutors arrested a Chinese dissident residing in the U.S., charging him with secretly collaborating with China's intelligence agency and spying on pro-democracy groups.
The U.S. Justice Department announced that Yuanjun Tang, 67, was charged with acting as an unregistered agent of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and making false statements to the FBI, according to a press release.
Since 2018, it is alleged that Tang has been spying on the U.S. under the instructions of China's intelligence agency, the Ministry of State Security (MSS).
In 2002, Tang defected to Taiwan following his imprisonment for opposing the one-party authoritarian political system controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
He defected to Taiwan and was subsequently granted asylum in the U.S., where he lived in New York City.
Between 2018 and June 2023, Tang worked as a PRC agent under the direction of the MSS.
Authorities said Tang relayed information to the PRC about U.S.-based Chinese democracy organizations.
He assisted MSS intelligence officers in joining encrypted messaging applications used by PRC dissidents and pro-democracy activists, and traveled "at least" three times for face-to-face meetings with them.
Federal authorities claim to have discovered evidence of Tang's espionage activities, including instructions from the MSS, during their investigation.
Tang lied to the FBI about his ability to access an email account used for communication with his MSS handler, according to federal authorities.
Tang was accused of conspiring to work as an agent for a foreign government without informing the attorney general, which could result in a five-year prison sentence; acting as an agent for a foreign government without informing the attorney general, which could result in a 10-year prison sentence; and making false statements, which could result in a five-year prison sentence.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors if convicted.
The FBI is continuing to investigate.
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