Chinese national charged with acting as Beijing's agent in local California election

Yaoning Sun arrested for conspiring with Chinese government to influence U.S. elections, promoting pro-Beijing politicians.

A Chinese national was arrested on Thursday (December 19, 2024) on charges of acting as an illegal agent for Beijing when serving as the campaign manager for an unnamed politician elected to a city council in Southern California two years ago.

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The arrest of Yaoning "Mike" Sun, 64, came amid rising concerns that the Chinese government has cultivated a network of operatives to influence local elections in the U.S. to install politicians who are friendly to Beijing and can help promote Chinese interests.

According to a complaint filed on Tuesday (December 17) in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Sun is accused of conspiring with Chen Jun, who was sentenced to 20 months last month for acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government.

Chen, 71, also a Chinese national, pleaded guilty in July to using Chinese money to bribe federal agents to undermine the anti-Beijing spiritual group Falun Gong. The charge against Sun shows that Chen also conspired to interfere with local elections.

It was not immediately clear if Sun had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.

Sun was instructed by Chen to write up a report in 2023 to recount to Chinese officials how they helped the local politician get elected, according to the affidavit. Subsequent writings between the two men described the city councilperson as a "new political star" and included a request for $80,000 to fund more pro-Beijing activities in the United States, according to the court documents.