Arcadia Mayor Agrees to Plead Guilty over Role as Chinese Foreign Agent
Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang, whose former fiancé was convicted of acting as an illegal agent for China, has resigned from her post following charges that she was also working for the People’s Republic of China.
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Wang was charged, and has since agreed to plead guilty, with acting as an illegal agent for Communist China. The charge is a felony, the Department of Justice announced, and Wang could face up to ten years in federal prison as well as up to $250,000 in fines.
Federal prosecutors said Wang admitted to acting “at the direction and control” of the PRC from 2020 to 2022.
The conduct, which occurred before Wang took office in December 2022, included coordinating with individuals in the United States to push pro-Beijing messaging. Wang did not notify the U.S. attorney general of her activity, which is required by law.
“Individuals elected to public office in the United States should act only for the people of the United States that they represent,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said. “It is deeply concerning that someone who previously received and executed directives from PRC government officials is now in a position of public trust at all.”
Wang worked with her former fiancé, Yaoning “Mike” Sun, on a website that posed as a Chinese-American news outlet, according to court documents. Sun, who was sentenced in February to four years in prison for his role, pleaded guilty to one count of acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. Previously, Wang denied any connection to Sun, although she had publicly referred to him as her fiancé.
The website, described by prosecutors as a propaganda arm for the PRC, allegedly published content created by Chinese officials.
One example included a prewritten article sent to Wang that rejected allegations that China is engaging in forced labor and genocide in Xinjiang. After Wang and others posted the article online, the Chinese official messaged, saying, “So fast, thank you everyone.”
In another correspondence, Wang replied “Thank you leader” after Beijing requested edits to an article.
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Wang also allegedly worked with convicted PRC operative John Chen, prosecutors said. Chen has connections to China’s intelligence apparatus and President Xi Jinping.
“The allegations at the center of this case, that a foreign government sought to exert influence over a local elected official, are deeply troubling,” the city of Arcadia said in a statement. “We take them seriously.”
The city noted Wang’s activities did not affect city operations.
“Following an internal review, we can confirm that no City finances, staff, or decision-making processes were involved,” the statement said.
Sun was also deeply intertwined in working on behalf of the PRC, including his efforts to help elect a person referred to as “Individual 1” to a city council seat in an undisclosed location. Both Sun and “Individual 1” also worked together, at the direction of the Chinese government, to create and disperse pro-PRC propaganda throughout the United States.
Sun acted as an agent of the PRC from at least 2022 to 2024, ostensibly following Wang’s tenure. His work extended beyond publishing propaganda. He requested $80,000 to plan and execute a pro-PRC demonstration in Washington, D.C., on the Fourth of July.
Sun expressed concern over Taiwan, Tibet, and Xinjiang independence and continued to communicate with the PRC through an official at the consulate general in Los Angeles regarding Taiwanese activity in Southern California.
The news comes as President Donald Trump arrives in China on Wednesday for a summit with Xi Jinping. The trip was previously pushed back six weeks as a result of the ongoing conflict with Iran.
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