The FBI on Dec. 19 arrested a close associate of a local California politician, accusing him of scheming together with a recently sentenced Chinese spy to amplify China’s influence in the U.S. political circle.
Sun Yaoning, also known as Mike Sun, was the campaign manager and close personal confidante to a Southern California city council member that the Chinese authorities supported, according to a newly unsealed complaint.
The 64-year-old has worked closely with Chen Jun, or John Chen, who a New York judge sentenced to 20 months in November for bribing the IRS against Falun Gong, a faith group that the Chinese regime has spent 25 years trying to suppress in China and globally, the document shows.
U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Martin Estrada said Sun’s alleged conduct was “deeply concerning.”
“We cannot permit hostile foreign powers to meddle in the governance of our country,” he said.
Akil Davis, assistant director for the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, said the case highlights the breadth of the Chinese regime’s “relentless intelligence and malign influence activities targeting the United States.” He said that the FBI will “continue to use all the tools at its disposal” to identify the Chinese intelligence operations, disrupt Chinese information laundering networks, and “bring to justice those who seek to engage in criminal conspiracies to undermine the integrity of our elected officials.”
In conversations with Chinese officials following the politician’s election in November 2022, Chen referred to Sun and the California politician as part of a “basic team dedicated for us,” according to the filing.
“Mr. Sun has been my helping hand in the Chinese community since 1997,” Chen was quoted as telling one Chinese official in January 2023.
The politician, whose name authorities redacted from the complaint, was one of the local U.S. politicians Chen assessed Beijing could influence on issues such as Taiwan, according to the prosecutors.
Sun had previously served in the Chinese military, the FBI agent said in the complaint. Public records show that he is the vice director of the American Chinese Culture Association, one of several U.S.-based pro-Beijing groups where he holds titles. Sun is also the CEO of a U.S.-based media group called N&N Media Group, and has for years organized large-scale events to promote Beijing’s narratives and celebrate key Party anniversaries, according to Chinese media reports.
By Eva Fu
