A Southern California man was arrested on federal charges for allegedly acting as an agent of the Chinese government to influence a local city council election in 2022.
A Southern California man was arrested Thursday on federal charges for allegedly acting on behalf of the People's Republic of China to influence a local city council election. Yaoning 'Mike' Sun, 64, of Chino Hills was arrested without incident and is expected to make his initial appearance Thursday afternoon in downtown Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. A criminal complaint filed in L.A. federal court charges Sun with acting as an illegal agent of a foreign power.
He is also charged with conspiring with another man, Chen Jun, who was sentenced to federal prison last month for acting as an illegal agent of the PRC government and plotting to target U.S.-based practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice banned in China, federal prosecutors said. According to the complaint, Sun served as the campaign manager and close personal confidante for an unnamed Southern California politician who was running for city council of a city in the area — not named in court papers — in 2022. During the campaign, Sun allegedly communicated with Chen regarding his efforts to get the politician elected. Chen discussed with Chinese government officials how the PRC could 'influence' local politicians in the United States, particularly on the issue of Taiwan, according to the complaint. In November 2022, shortly after the politician was elected to the city council, Chen instructed Sun to prepare a report on the election that was sent to Chinese government officials, who responded positively and expressed thanks, according to the complaint affidavit. Chen also sent a message to the newly elected politician stating that the politician was 'doing a good job, I hope you can continue the good work, make Chinese people proud,' the affidavit state
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