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A Chinese national was arrested Thursday on charges of acting as an illegal agent for Beijing when he served as campaign manager for an unnamed politician elected to a Southern California city council two years ago.
The arrest of Yaoning “Mike” Sun, 64, comes amid growing concerns that the Chinese government has developed a network of operatives to influence local US elections to install politicians friendly to Beijing and able to help advance Chinese interests.
According to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in the US District Court for the Central District of California, Sun is accused of conspiring with Chen Jun, who was sentenced to 20 months in prison last month for acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government.
Chen, 71, also a Chinese citizen, 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 if Sun had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Sun was instructed by Chen to write a report in 2023 to tell Chinese officials how they helped a local politician get elected, according to the affidavit. Subsequent filings between the two 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 court documents.
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Chen asked Sun to list all the major American politicians with whom the city councilor was familiar and told Sun that it would be “very effective to raise” the status of the councilor in China.
“This case is another example of a very disturbing trend: The People’s Republic of China is seeking to influence foreign and domestic policy in the United States,” Martin Estrada, U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, told reporters. . “To do this, government officials in China seek to help elect individuals they perceive to be friendly to China’s 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 promote Beijing’s agenda in exchange for financial benefits worth millions of dollars.
In California, Estrada said Yaoning Sun appeared to be ideologically invested in promoting the Chinese government’s interests in the United States, noting that he had previously served in the Chinese military. The lawsuit does not allege financial gain for Yaoning Sun, who is likely not related to Linda Sun because they share a common Chinese name.
The affidavit said Yaoning Sun, a resident of Chino Hills near Los Angeles, also ran a media outlet called “US News Center” with the councilman and paid some of the politician’s travel expenses.
Prosecutors say Sun worked closely with Chen, who appeared to be in regular contact with Chinese officials. Their communications included how to protest a proposed visit by a US congressman to Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing sees as part of Chinese territory.
The men discussed how to arrange a meeting for the politician to meet with a leading Chinese diplomat in Los Angeles and arrange travel plans for the politician to visit China.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
