Fugitive Chinese “researcher” arrested, part of nationwide investigation in more than 25 cities Nine Line News Team July 31, 2020 Articles, Articles+, Nine Line News 34 A “visiting researcher” from China has been ordered to remain in a California jail as a flight risk after she allegedly lied about her ties to the People’s Liberation Army Air Force and the Chinese Communist Party. Juan Tang, 37, has been charged with fraud and misuse of visas over answers she gave U.S. authorities in December when she entered the country to begin work as a cancer researcher at UC Davis. After FBI agents questioned her in her Davis apartment, Tang fled 70 miles into hiding in the Chinese consulate in San Francisco. Since U.S. authorities have no authority to enter the consulate without permission, it was not immediately clear whether she had voluntarily surrendered – although does anyone affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party do anything on a volunteer basis? Just sayin’… Tang faces charges in Sacramento federal court of fraud and misuse of visas, permits and other documents, which carry a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Tang is one of four Chinese spies researchers who studied at UC San Francisco, Stanford University, Indiana University and UC Davis and has been charged with allegedly lying about their ties to the Chinese military. But they’re not the only ones. The Justice Department says the four cases are part of a nationwide investigation in more than 25 cities of alleged efforts by Chinese researchers to spy on observe U.S. laboratory practices so they could be replicated in China. According to a statement, “These members of China’s People Liberation Army applied for research visas while hiding their true affiliation with the PLA,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “This is another part of the Chinese Communist Party’s plan to take advantage of our open society and exploit academic institutions. We will continue to conduct this investigation together with the FBI.” Almost half of the nearly 5,000 counter-intelligence investigations the FBI is conducting involve China, according to FBI Director Christopher Wray. James Mulvenon, an expert on the Chinese military and cyber operations with SOS International, a contractor that supports U.S. government agencies said, “This is by far the biggest response by the U.S. to China’s theft of IP (intellectual property) since the opening to China.” It was President Jimmy Carter who granted China full diplomatic recognition in 1979, while acknowledging mainland China’s One China principle and severing normal ties with Taiwan. In 1984 President Ronald Reagan visited China, and later that year, the U.S. government permitted Beijing to make purchases of U.S. military equipment. U.S. President Bill Clinton signed the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000 in October, granting Beijing permanent normal trade relations with the United States and paving the way for China to join the World Trade Organization. By 2004, U.S.-China trade had risen from $5 billion in 1980 to $231 billion. In 2006, China surpassed Mexico as the United States’ second-biggest trade partner, after Canada. In 2008, China surpassed Japan to become the largest holder of U.S. debt—or treasuries—at around $600 billion. In 2010, China became the second largest economy in the world. But in 2020, the “Wuhan Virus” hit our shores. And that changed everything.
