Chinese agent suspected of spying on dissidents in Boston arrested and charged

Litang Liang is suspected of having provided Beijing with information on members of the Chinese community in Boston, supporting democracy in Taiwan.

By Le Figaro with AFP

Posted on 05/15/2023 at 17:44update on 05/15/2023 at 17:44

The US government announced on Monday the arrest of a man accused of being a chinese agent having spied on dissidents in the Boston area. Litang Liang, 63, was arrested on Tuesday (May 9) and charged with serving as an undeclared agent of the People’s Republic of China, according to a statement from the Ministry of Justice.

He is suspected of having, between 2018 and 2022, provided the Chinese authorities with information on members of the Chinese community in Boston supporting the democracy in taiwan. He is notably accused of having transmitted to Beijing the name of a person suspected of having damaged a Chinese flag, the video of an activist filmed during a pro-Hong Kong demonstration or photos of Chinese dissidents.

Up to ten years in prison

«We will not tolerate China’s efforts to influence public discourse and threaten civic participation in the United States“Commented Matthew Olsen, head of national security issues at the Department of Justice. Litang Liang faces up to ten years in prison. The United States routinely arrests people accused of being Chinese spies. In April, two Americans of Chinese origin were thus accused of having set up a “clandestine police stationsin New York to monitor dissidents.

Beijing, which denies any accusation of espionage, is not left out. A 78-year-old American, a permanent resident of Hong Kong, was sentenced Monday in China to life in prison for “spying“. These cases tense each time a little more the relations between the two countries, which engage in fierce competition, whether diplomatic, military, technological or economic.