NYPD officer, Army reservist charged with acting as an illegal Chinese agent

A naturalized American citizen who serves as a member of the New York City Police Department and the U.S. Army Reserves has been charged with acting as an illegal agent of China, the Justice Department announced Monday. 

Baimadajie Angwang, 33, has also been charged with wire fraud, false statements and obstructing an official proceeding, according to the press release.

For years dating to at least 2014, Angwang took actions at the behest of officials at New York City's Chinese consulate, prosecutors alleged.

He allegedly reported about the activity of Chinese citizens located in the New York region, identified and gauged possible intelligence sources in the Tibetan community and supplied Chinese officials with access to NYPD officials via invitations to events, DOJ said.

Court documents indicate that Angwang told his Chinese handler that he desired to achieve promotion in the police department in order to help the Chinese government and bring "glory to China."

“State and local officials should be aware that they are not immune to the threat of Chinese espionage,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers said. 

“According to the allegations, the Chinese government recruited and directed a U.S. citizen and member of our nation’s largest law enforcement department to further its intelligence gathering and repression of Chinese abroad. Our police departments provide for our public safety and are often the first line of defense against the national security threats our country faces. We will continue to work with our state and local partners to protect our nation’s great police departments,” Demers said.