A former US telecom employee who passed information to China was sentenced to four years in prison

On Monday, a former US telecom worker who gave Beijing information on Chinese dissidents and Falun Gong adherents was given a four-year jail term.

In a plea deal, Ping Li, 59, of Florida, acknowledged serving as an unregistered agent of the Chinese government. According to Voice of America, Ping sent China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) private company information and revealed the personal information of a Florida-based Falun Gong member.

The spiritual organization known as the Falun Gong is prohibited in China, where it has been branded a “evil cult” since ten thousand adherents peacefully demonstrated outside a Beijing government facility in 1999.

Li, a Chinese immigrant to the United States, reportedly worked for large US information technology and telecom firms. Information from as early as 2012 indicates that Li operated under the instruction of MSS personnel, according to the Justice Department. He collected information on Falun Gong adherents, pro-democracy activists, Chinese dissidents, and non-governmental organizations with headquarters in the United States. Li’s activities are part of a larger Chinese attempt to target dissidents who face severe persecution, especially Falun Gong practitioners.

Separately, a 71-year-old Chinese man from Los Angeles named John Chen was sentenced to 20 months in jail last week for allegedly participating in a scheme to target Falun Gong adherents in the United States. Additionally, Chen was found guilty of serving as an unregistered Chinese government agent.

China’s growing dependence on human intelligence operatives and clandestine operations to repress opponents overseas is shown by cases like as Ping Li’s and John Chen’s conviction.

Li and Chen were both found guilty of serving as unregistered Chinese government agents, which is indicative of an increasing practice of using Chinese immigrants and citizens as middlemen in espionage operations against other nations.

These incidents highlight ongoing worries about Chinese espionage in the US, especially targeting organizations like Falun Gong that the Chinese government considers a challenge to its authority. These initiatives are a part of China’s larger plan, which has become more complex and extensive in recent years, to increase its power and stifle political opposition across the globe.