Tang Yuanjun, who was previously imprisoned in China, fled the country a few years after the millennium shift by swimming to Taiwan and later received political asylum in the USA, where he has lived since then.
He was arrested on Wednesday in the Queens district of New York, accused of having performed tasks under the leadership of China's Ministry of Public Security between 2018 and 2023.
The New York District Attorney's office writes in a press release that Tang Yuanjun regularly received instructions from an agent at the Chinese Ministry through an email address, encrypted chats, text messages, and audio and video calls.
He is also said to have sent information to the agent about individuals and groups that may be of particular interest to China, such as US-based Chinese democracy activists and dissidents.
