Chinese men jailed for recruiting US military personnel to spy for Beijing

A new banner featuring an image of US President Donald Trump is displayed on the facade of the US Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC on February 20, 2026. — AFP pic

First Published: Saturday, 31 Oct 2026 11:23 AM MYT

LOS ANGELES, Oct 31 — Two Chinese men who admitted trying to recruit US military service members to spy for Beijing were imprisoned in California on Friday.

Liren Lai and Yuance Chen were ordered to serve 30 months in a federal lockup and to undergo three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to acting on the orders of China’s Ministry of State Security.

The US Department of Justice said the men had carried out clandestine intelligence activities in the United States that included facilitating “dead drop” cash payments in exchange for information related to the national security of the United States.

They also gathered information about US military personnel and installations, and tried to recruit intelligence assets from within the US military.

“Let this sentencing serve as a clear warning: If you attempt to jeopardize the safety and security of our service members, our citizens, or our nation, justice will find you,” said US Attorney Craig Missakian for the Northern District of California.

Lai, who arrived in the US on a tourist visa, recruited Chen – a permanent resident – into the scheme and initially served as an intermediary between Chen and intelligence officers, until Chen was able to receive his orders directly from his handler.

The DoJ said the two men had been working since at least May 2021 for the branch of the Chinese government responsible for conducting foreign intelligence and counterintelligence operations.

They were arrested in June 2025. Both men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to act as agents of a foreign government without prior notification to the Attorney General and acting as agents of a foreign government without prior notification over the following months. — AFP