DOJ charges Chinese nationals for spying on a criminal investigation

WASHINGTON - Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Monday that two Chinese foreign nationals, Guochun He and Zheng Wang, have been charged in New York for trying to get information about the criminal prosecution of China-based telecom giant Huawei. 

The Department of Justice has issued arrest warrants for the pair, but it’s not clear whether they will ever be taken into custody.

Prosecutors say the charged individuals tried to bribe their way into getting information about the prosecution, including witness lists and trial strategy. The Chinese nationals, who prosecutors believe to be spies, paid tens of thousands of dollars and provided jewelry to someone they thought would provide them with inside information, but it was actually a double agent working for the FBI. 

"Today's cases make clear that Chinese agents will not hesitate to break the law and to violate international norms in the process," Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said. "In the words of our intelligence community, China seeks to be a major power on the world's stage and challenge the United States in multiple arenas."

Meanwhile, the criminal prosecution of China-based tech giant Huawei is ongoing. They are the world's largest telecommunications equipment manufacturer according to the DOJ. The company and its affiliates are facing dozens of charges, including for conspiracy to steal trade secrets and fraud.

Eleven other Chinese have been charged with various offenses in cases, including harassment of individuals in the U.S., that FBI Director Christopher Wray said show that China’s "economic assaults and their rights violations are part of the same problem."

"They try to silence anyone who fights back against their theft — companies, politicians, individuals — just as they try to silence anyone who fights back against their other aggressions," he said.