abcnews.go.com
Open in
urlscan Pro
18.66.119.62
Public Scan
URL:
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/doj-accuses-china-spying-harassing-dissidents-inside-us/story?id=98635039
Submission: On April 19 via manual from US — Scanned from DE
Submission: On April 19 via manual from US — Scanned from DE
Form analysis
1 forms found in the DOM<form><span class="search"><span aria-label="Open Search Bar" class="search__trigger search__trigger--default" role="button" tabindex="0"></span><span class="search--default"><input type="text" aria-label="Search Headlines, News and Video..."
class="search__input" placeholder="Search Headlines, News and Video..." tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="search__input__submit" tabindex="-1"><span class="search__input__icon"></span></span></span></form>
Text Content
ABC NEWS VIDEO LIVE SHOWS CLIMATE Interest Successfully Added We'll notify you here with news about Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? OffOn STREAM ON breaking 3 arrested in birthday party shooting that left 4 killed, 32 injured DOJ ACCUSES CHINA OF USING 'POLICE STATION' TO SPY ON, HARASS DISSIDENTS INSIDE US Two defendants are charged with operating a "police station" in New York City. ByPierre Thomas and Luke Barr April 17, 2023, 9:49 PM 2:56 DOJ accuses China of using 'police station' to spy on, harass dissidents inside US The FBI on Monday revealed what it said is evidence of expanding espionage and security activity by the Chinese gover...Read MoreRead More The FBI on Monday revealed what it said is evidence of expanding espionage and security activity by the Chinese government on U.S. soil. The Justice Department announced three cases suggesting more brazen activity by China inside the U.S. in the wake of the spy balloon controversy. One case involves Chinese security officials allegedly spying on Zoom calls and then harassing Chinese dissident participants identified as targets. Ten Chinese officials were charged with conspiracy along with an employee of a telecommunications company. Sources told ABC News the company was Zoom and the insider from China allegedly was able to disrupt meetings on Zoom. A Zoom spokesperson told ABC News the company has been "cooperating fully with the Department of Justice. We wholly support the U.S. Government’s commitment to protecting American companies and citizens from foreign coercion or influence." China national flag STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images MORE: CANADIAN POLICE INVESTIGATING ALLEGED CHINESE 'POLICE STATIONS' Another of the cases involves Chinese security officials allegedly setting up a "police station" in New York City and using it as a base of operations to spy on, co-opt or intimidate Chinese dissidents living in the city and elsewhere. The charges unsealed allege two defendants were operating an illegal overseas "police station" -- the first ever in the U.S. -- located in lower Manhattan, for a provincial branch of the Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China (PRC). A top DOJ official told ABC News' that the charges show how brazen China is. "[It] shows how brazen they are, how unwilling they are to work under the laws that apply in free democracies," David Newman the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for National Security at the Department of Justice told Chief Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas. "And it demonstrates that they choose to project their authoritarian system outside their borders." The two suspects operated out a Manhattan office building in Chinatown at the direction of a Chinese police official, prosecutors alleged. The men engaged in a number of activities on U.S. soil, prosecutors said, including participating in counter protests and targeting specific Chinese dissidents for harassment. "It is simply outrageous that China's Ministry of Public Security thinks it can get away with establishing a secret, illegal police station on U.S. soil to aid its efforts to export repression and subvert our rule of law," said Acting Assistant Director Kurt Ronnow of the Counterintelligence Division. "This case serves as a powerful reminder that the People's Republic of China will stop at nothing to bend people to their will and silence messages they don't want anyone to hear." The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is seen outside of its headquarters in Washington, DC, August 15, 2022. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images, FILE The men arrested were expected in a Brooklyn federal court later Monday. If convicted of conspiring to act as agents of the PRC, the defendants face a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The obstruction of justice charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The Justice Department also announced charges against 34 members of a specialized unit in China. The unit, run by the Chinese national police or Public Security Ministry, the U.S. said, allegedly created fake social media accounts, including on Twitter, to harass Chinese dissidents in the U.S. and to promote propaganda from China. Newman said it further shows how China wants to further their agenda in the U.S. "We're limited in what we can say outside of our charges, but everyone who follows China in the PRC knows that this effort is ongoing and that they are going to continue to take other efforts to try to project their system into the United States," he said. FBI Director Christopher Wray expressed concern about the Chinese "police stations" during a congressional hearing in November 2022. "I'm very concerned about this. We are aware of the existence of these stations," Wray told a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing in November. "But to me, it is outrageous to think that the Chinese police would attempt to set up shop, you know, in New York, let's say, without proper coordination. It violates sovereignty and circumvents standard judicial and law enforcement cooperation processes," he added. ABC News' Alem Agha and Beatrice Peterson contributed to this report. Related Topics China -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OBI Weniger Energie und Wasser – mehr Freude am PoolOBIMehr erfahren Undo TAG24 NEWS Frau glaubt, sie fotografiere süßen Vogel: Dann erkennt sie die WahrheitTAG24 NEWS Undo InTouch Heidi Klum: Das sind alle Ex-Männer & Ex-Freunde des TopmodelsInTouchWeiterlesen Undo Putin meets with China's defense minister in Moscow Undo Police: Maine man recently released from prison confessed to killing parents, parents’ friends and firing on motorists Undo Convicted serial rapist sentenced to more than 150 years Undo Health Benefits How To Restore Vision Without Surgery? Write Down The Recipe!Health Benefits Undo Terrassenüberdachung Angebote | Gesponserte Links Terrassenüberdachung kostet jetzt fast nichts mehrTerrassenüberdachung Angebote | Gesponserte Links Undo Reizwäsche Damen | Gesponserte Links Schöne Frauen DessousReizwäsche Damen | Gesponserte Links Undo by Taboolaby Taboola Sponsored LinksSponsored Links Promoted LinksPromoted Links TOP STORIES 2 TEXAS CHEERLEADERS SHOT AFTER GETTING INTO WRONG CAR IN PARKING LOT * Apr 19, 4:55 PM FLORIDA EXPANDS SO-CALLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' RULES THROUGH 12TH GRADE * Apr 19, 4:10 PM HOME DEPOT EMPLOYEE FATALLY SHOT WHILE CONFRONTING ALLEGED SHOPLIFTER * 2 hours ago 3 ARRESTED IN BIRTHDAY PARTY SHOOTING THAT LEFT 4 KILLED, 32 INJURED * 44 minutes ago MAN ALLEGEDLY GUNS DOWN PARENTS, 2 OTHERS DAYS AFTER HIS RELEASE FROM PRISON * 3 hours ago ABC NEWS LIVE 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events ABC News Network Privacy Policy Your US State Privacy Rights Children's Online Privacy Policy Interest-Based Ads About Nielsen Measurement Terms of Use Contact Us Copyright © 2023 ABC News Internet Ventures. All rights reserved.