Chinese national charged with acting as Beijing's agent in local California election

WASHINGTON — A Chinese national was arrested Thursday on charges of acting as an illegal agent for Beijing when 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 rising concerns that the Chinese government has cultivated a network of operatives to influence local elections in the U.S. to install politicians who are friendly to Beijing and can help 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 to 20 months last month 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 charge against Sun shows that Chen also conspired to interfere with local elections.

It wasn't immediately clear if Sun had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.

Sun was instructed by Chen to write up a report in 2023 to recount to Chinese officials how they helped the local politician get elected, according to the affidavit. Subsequent writings between the two men described the city councilperson 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.

Chen asked Sun to list all the mainstream American politicians the city councilperson was familiar with and told Sun that it would be ''very effective to elevate'' the status of the councilperson in China.

''This case is yet 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, said in a call with reporters. ''To do so, government officials in China are seeking to help get elected individuals who they see as being friendly to Chinese foreign policy.''

The councilperson is not named in court papers. Yaoning Sun is listed as a campaign treasurer for Arcadia city council candidate Eileen Wang on a campaign statement filing stamped in February 2022, according to records on the city's website. In filings later in 2022, another individual is listed as the treasurer, the records show.

Wang ran for election to the city council in 2022 and won. She ran a tutoring services company in the city about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northeast of Los Angeles and has participated in numerous community groups, according to her biography on the city's website.

Wang didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment and a message was left on a phone number listed online as belonging to her. Jackie Tran, a spokesperson for the city of Arcadia, didn't immediately return a phone message.

The charges 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 appeared to be ideologically invested in furthering 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 financial gains for Yaoning Sun, who probably is not related to Linda Sun because they share a common Chinese name.

In the affidavit, it's alleged that Yaoning Sun, a resident of Chino Hills outside Los Angeles, also ran a media outlet called the U.S. News Center with the councilperson and paid for some of the politician's travel expenses.

Sun is listed on his public LinkedIn profile as the director of U.S. News Center, of which Wang is registered as the owner in California.

Prosecutors say Sun worked closely with Chen, who appeared to be in regular contact with Chinese officials. Their communications included how to protest a U.S. congressperson's proposed visit to Taiwan, a self-governed island that Beijing sees as part of Chinese territory.

The men discussed how to set up a meeting for the politician to meet with the top Chinese diplomat in Los Angeles and arrange travel plans for the politician to visit China.

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Taxin reported from Santa Ana, California, and Ding from Los Angeles.