The Chinatown neighborhood in lower Manhattan was the perfect camouflage. FBI agents arrested two Chinese citizens on Monday on federal charges of expiating and conspiring in the United States as infiltrators of the People's Republic of China.
The two arrested, who were to be brought to justice, are allegedly connected to an illegal police post from their country that operated in New York. According to official data, offered during a press appearance, this position is part of a network of more than a hundred "headquarters" that collaborate with the police of the Asian giant in the world and that baffle those responsible for intelligence and diplomacy. .
In addition, in the New York investigation they have also charged at least 34 other people who worked to harass and silence dissidents who are in the United States. All of these are supposed to be in China and, therefore, far from being brought to justice.
The investigations against Lu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, have been carried out by the FBI under the supervision of the attorney general in Brooklyn. The Chinese police post operated without any jurisdiction or diplomatic approval. This is the first time that criminal charges have been filed in connection with this type of police deployment on foreign soil.
The investigations have involved the investment of a long period of time. US counterintelligence agents searched the offices of that post, located on the third floor of a building on East Broadway, at number 107. This marked an escalation in the efforts to put an end to the tasks of the Chinese police to exercise their control on the citizens of the diaspora beyond its borders.
Other countries such as Canada, Ireland or the Netherlands have required China to dismantle this type of operational equipment.
Lu resided in the Bronx and was a naturalized American. He appeared as the president of a non-profit organization whose offices were located in the building where the police station was.
All those involved were part of the so-called special project 912, which tried to positively influence a perception of China abroad. They used social media to make that favorable propaganda while attacking perceived enemies, the Justice Department said.
Apart from its dismantling, its failure seems absolute. A Pew Research Center survey recently indicated that public opinion in the US regarding China is getting worse and worse and the percentage of Americans who view that other country with mistrust is already 84%.
The infiltrators were allegedly run by the Chinese Ministry of Public Security and were tasked with creating accounts that gave the impression of being run by US citizens. They were also dedicated, among other initiatives, to launching videos and articles in which they pointed out the defenders of democracy in China.
