US authorities have arrested a man in Massachusetts for allegedly acting as an agent of China by providing Beijing with information about Chinese dissidents in the United States, the Justice Department said in a press release on Monday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th May, 2023) US authorities have arrested a man in Massachusetts for allegedly acting as an agent of China by providing Beijing with information about Chinese dissidents in the United States, the Justice Department said in a press release on Monday.
"Litang Liang, 63, of Brighton, was indicted on one count of acting as an agent of a foreign government without providing notification to the US Attorney General and one count of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government without providing notification to the US Attorney General," the release said.
The Justice Department alleges that Liang worked as an agent for China from about 2018 through at least 2022.
Liang allegedly provided Chinese officials with photographs and information on individuals and organizations in the Boston area and helped China's Ministry of Public Security identify potential recruits. He also helped organize a rally aimed at countering a planned pro-democracy protest, the department said.
Liang's work allegedly focused on individuals and groups with pro-Taiwan leanings. On one occasion, he allegedly informed Chinese officials about the identity of a person who "sabotaged" Chinese flags in Boston's Chinatown in 2018. A year later, he gave Chinese officials a video of a dissident attending a pro-Hong Kong march, the Justice Department said.
Liang faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for failing to inform the US government that he was a foreign government. He has also been charged with conspiracy to act as an agent of the Chinese government without notifying the US attorney general, a charge that carries up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.�
