The campaign manager for a Southern California city council member has been indicted by U.S. attorneys for acting as an illegal agent of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The scheme was part of a growing effort by the PRC to influence local politicians in the United States, according to the Department of Justice.
The defendant is Yaoning “Mike” Sun, 64, of Chino Hills. The city council member he worked for was elected to office in 2022 and is referred to as “Individual 1.” The Los Angeles Times reports that “two sources familiar with the investigation identified the person as Arcadia City Councilmember Eileen Wang." According to the Times, Wang is also engaged to Sun.
During Individual 1’s campaign for office, prosecutors say Sun communicated with another man, Chen Jun, about efforts to get the politician elected. Jun described how the PRC could use American local governments to foster popular opposition to Taiwan’s independence.
According to the DOJ, Jun referred to the city council member (Individual 1) as part of “the basic team dedicated for us” in communications with the Chinese government. Sun relayed that the politician could combat “anti-China forces” by participating in a U.S. Independence Day parade in Washington, D.C. in 2023. That same year, the council member traveled to China.
Jun was sentenced to prison last month for acting as an illegal agent of the PRC as well as bribing an agent from the Internal Revenue Service. One of Jun’s assignments in the U.S. was to go after practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice banned in China.
China’s efforts to interfere with U.S. local governments is part of a “very disturbing trend” aimed at undermining pro-Democracy efforts, warned U.S. Atty. Martin Estrada. The charges against Sun come two years after a troubling Wall Street Journal report on China’s efforts to manipulate state and local officials in the U.S. Needless to say, the PRC’s ongoing influence campaign is something every public official should be aware of and prepared to guard against.
Read the full government complaint here.