A Brooklyn, New York, jury on Tuesday convicted a former New York City police sergeant and two others for acting as illegal agents of Chinese authorities when they attempted to intimidate US residents to return to China. Michael McMahon, a former New York City police sergeant, faces up to 20 years in prison. The other two defendants, Zheng Congying Yong and Zhu Yong, face up to 10 and 25 years in prison, respectively.
“The defendants engaged in a campaign of harassment and coercion on behalf of the [People’s Republic of China] to force the victim’s repatriation to China from the United States, including by threatening family members,” said Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Department of Justice will hold accountable those who would help repressive regimes violate the fundamental freedoms of people in the US”
Between 2016 and 2019, the three defendants engaged in a campaign of harassment, intimidation, and stalking in an attempt to force a US resident and his wife to return to China. Zhu hired McMahon to stalk and surveil John Doe #1 and his family. McMahon reported to Zhu and other Chinese officials, like Hu Ji, a PRC police officer with the Wuhan Public Security Bureau, and Tu Lan, a PRC prosecutor with the Wuhan Procuratorate.
Hu Ji and Tu Lan brought John Doe #1’s father from China to attempt to convince him to return to the country. The encounter allowed McMahon to discover John Doe #1’s home address and report it to Chinese authorities. Their intimidation efforts continued to escalate, culminating in September 2018 incident where Zheng tried to force open the door to John Doe #1’s house. When he was unable to get inside, Zheng left a note threatening, “If you are willing to go back to the mainland and spend 10 years in prison, your wife and children will be all right.”
McMahon was convicted of acting as an illegal agent, conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, and interstate stalking. Zhu was convicted of conspiracy to act as an illegal agent, acting as an illegal agent, conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, and interstate stalking. Zheng Congying was convicted of conspiracy to commit interstate stalking and interstate stalking.
China condemned the convictions and rejected the allegations that it is involved in dubious activities abroad. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that, “China’s law enforcement cooperation with any country in the world is conducted in strict accordance with international law with full respect for the laws and judicial sovereignty of other countries and commitment to protecting the lawful rights and interests of criminal suspects.”
China previously told the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) that John Doe #1 and Jane Doe #1 were wanted for corruption charges, and continues to maintain that this was a legitimate law enforcement operation. Ming emphasized this, saying the US “has chosen to ignore the facts” and “deliberately distorted China’s efforts as something sinister.”
The verdict comes after a three-week trial that covered the defendants’ involvement with “Operation Fox Hunt,” a global Chinese effort to locate and expatriate dissidents in other countries. US authorities have made efforts to unearth and counter such activity, with the the Department of Justice arresting Chinese nationals for intimidating pro-democracy activists and charging people with “transnational repression,” obstruction of justice and international stalking. Other countries have made similar efforts. Ireland closed an overseas Chinese police station, Japan announced an investigation of “police bases” and the UK recently ordered the closure of all such stations in the country.
