Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have arrested two people who are accused of assisting in the operation of an illegal police station for the Chinese government in New York City.
Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), who serves on the U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), reacted to the arrests in an April 18 tweet.
"We will not allow the Chinese Communist Party or any foreign power to conduct illegal surveillance or intimidation of anyone within the United States," Krishnamoorthi wrote in the tweet.
NBC New York reported Harry Lu Jianwang and Chen Jinping were charged with conspiring to act as agents for the Chinese government. The two were arrested at their homes in New York City last week and are accused of establishing, "the first overseas police station in the United States on behalf of the Fuzhou branch of the (Ministry of Public Security)," according to a statement from the FBI. The FBI announced in November it was aware the CCP was operating the illegal police outpost. The details came to light after Safeguard Defenders, a non-governmental organization, conducted its own investigation that revealed there were dozens of similar stations around the world.
The New York Times (NYT) previously reported Chinese state media called the service centers policing facilities, despite denials from Chinese officials who claimed they were run by volunteers, according to NBC New York. The NYT also reported the FBI searched the facility in the fall.
“Today’s action sends a strong message that we will not allow Chinese Communist Party officials to violate U.S. law or harass, intimidate, or conduct surveillance on anyone in the United States. These arrests also serve as a reminder that the victims of this persecution are often Chinese-Americans who came to this country to achieve the American Dream," Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and Chinese Communist Party, said in a joint statement on April 18. "As Chair and Ranking Member of the House Select Committee on the CCP, we will continue our vigilance in support of human rights and the rule of law in our own country and around the world.”
