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A Chinese national was arrested Thursday on charges of acting as an illegal agent for Beijing while serving as the campaign manager for an unnamed politician elected to a city council in Southern California two years ago.
The arrest of Yaoning “Mike” Sun, 64, came at a time of growing concern that the Chinese government has cultivated a network of operatives to influence local elections in the US to install politicians friendly to Beijing and could help to promote Chinese interests.
According to a complaint filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Sun is accused of conspiring with Chen Jun, who was sentenced last month to 20 months for acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government.
Chen, 71, also a Chinese national, pleaded guilty in July to using Chinese money to bribe federal agents to undermine the anti-Beijing spiritual group Falun Gong. The indictment against Sun shows that Chen also conspired to interfere in local elections.
It was not immediately clear whether Sun had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Sun was instructed by Chen to write up a report in 2023 to tell Chinese officials how they helped the local politician get elected, according to the affidavit. Subsequent texts between the two men described the city councilman as a “new political star” and included a request for $80,000 to fund more pro-Beijing activities in the United States, according to the court documents.
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Chen asked Sun to list all the mainstream American politicians the city councilor was familiar with and told Sun that it would be “very effective in raising the status of the councilor in China”.
“This case is yet another example of a very disturbing trend: the People’s Republic of China is trying to influence foreign and domestic policy in the United States,” said Martin Estrada, US attorney for the Central District of California, in a call with reporters. “To do that, government officials in China are trying to help get elected individuals they see as friendly to Chinese foreign policy.”
The accusations against Sun followed those against a former aide to two New York governors in September. Authorities have accused Linda Sun of acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government and using her positions to subtly advance Beijing’s agenda in exchange for financial benefits worth millions of dollars.
In California, Estrada said Yaoning Sun was ideologically invested in promoting the interests of the Chinese government in the United States, noting that he had previously served in the Chinese military. The complaint does not specify any financial gains for Yaoning Sun, who is likely unrelated to Linda Sun because they share a common Chinese name.
The affidavit alleges that Yaoning Sun, a resident of Chino Hills outside Los Angeles, also ran a media outlet with the “US News Center” with the council member and paid for some of the politician’s travel expenses.
Prosecutors say Sun worked closely with Chen, who appears to be in regular contact with Chinese officials. Their communications included how to protest the proposed visit of a US congressman to Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing views as part of Chinese territory.
The men discussed how to set up a meeting for the politician to meet the top Chinese diplomat in Los Angeles and arrange travel plans for the politician to visit China.
& copy 2024 The Canadian Press
