FBI Arrests 2 Over Secret Chinese Police Station in NYC

NEW YORK—The FBI arrested two people this morning in New York City for their role in operating a secret police station on behalf of China’s communist regime.

FBI agents arrested Lu Jianwang and Chen Jinping in New York City on April 17 for their alleged role in conducting an international campaign of repression from a secret police station in New York, according to the Justice Department (DOJ).

Prosecutors said the duo conspired to work as agents of China’s communist regime and took orders from the regime in order to track down and silence Chinese dissidents living in the United States.

U.S. District Attorney Breon Peace said that the effort revealed an immense violation of American sovereignty by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and a flagrant violation of international law.

“This prosecution reveals the Chinese government’s flagrant violation of our nation’s sovereignty by establishing a secret police station in the middle of New York City,” Peace said at a press conference in Brooklyn.

“Just imagine the NYPD opening an undeclared secret police station in Beijing.”

Peace said that the two defendants established the secret police station in New York at the behest of the CCP, and conducted transnational repressions schemes in coordination with the regime’s Ministry of Public Security.

Additionally, he said, the pair sought to destroy evidence of the conspiracy when they found out the FBI was investigating the site.

“As alleged, the defendants were directed to do [China’s] bidding, including helping locate a Chinese dissident living in the United States, and obstructed our investigation by deleting their communications with a Chinese Ministry of Public Security official,” Peace said.

In addition to the charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice, court documents allege that Lu had conducted work for the CCP regime in the United States since at least 2015.

At that time, the documents state, Lu engaged in protests in Washington, in support of CCP leader Xi Jinping. He was directed to do this by CCP authorities in China and even received a plaque from the regime as thanks for his efforts, the filings state.

Later, Lu helped to coordinate threats of violence against a Chinese dissident and their family in an attempt to force the person to return to China to be arrested by CCP authorities, according to court documents.

Lu also hired another agent through the secret police station to “track a U.S. resident on U.S. soil” and silence them on behalf of the regime in order to “protect its authoritarian worldview,” Peace said.

By “targeting members of the Chinese diaspora” through the illicit use of covert police station, the duo “repeatedly and flagrantly violated our nation’s soveregnty,” Peace said.

In two separate cases announced at the same time, the DOJ said that it was also charging 40 Chinese officials and police for conducting a coordinated harassment campaign against Chinese people living in New York City and elsewhere in the United States.

All of the defendants charged in those cases currently reside in China.

Eva Fu contributed to this report.