A former CIA agent on Friday pleaded guilty to spying for China, the US Department of Justice announced.
Alexander Ma (馬玉清), 71, a native of Hong Kong who became a naturalized US citizen, admitted to having provided “a large volume of classified US national defense information” to Chinese authorities in 2001, even though he had not been employed by the CIA for 12 years, the department said in a statement.
Ma’s meeting with representatives of the Shanghai State Security Bureau was initiated by another former CIA agent, Ma’s blood relative who was born in Shanghai and who also became a naturalized American, identified in the agency’s statement as “coconspirator #1,” the department said.
Photo: US Department of Justice via AP
At the end of the third day of the meeting in a Hong Kong hotel, Chinese “intelligence officers provided CC #1 with US$50,000 in cash, which Ma counted,” it said, adding that “Ma and CC #1 also agreed at that time to continue to assist” Chinese intelligence.
In 2003, Ma was hired as a linguist by the FBI in Hawaii “as part of an investigative plan, to work at an off-site location where his activities could be monitored” and his contacts with China could be probed, the department said.
In 2006, Ma “convinced CC #1 to provide the identities of at least two individuals depicted in photographs that were provided to Ma” by Chinese intelligence, it said.
Ma said that the information given, as well as what he provided in 2001, “would be used to injure the United States or to benefit” Chinese authorities, the department said.
Ma worked for the FBI until 2012, and it was unclear from the statement how he was unmasked.
If accepted by the courts, the guilty plea agreement, which ensures that Ma would cooperate with US authorities, provides for a 10-year prison sentence for him which could be handed down on Sept. 11.
SURVEYED CONCERN: A poll showed 74 percent of respondents believe Australia is too economically reliant on China and 71 percent say Beijing is a security threat Regional security concerns are expected to overshadow lucrative trade ties when Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強) visits New Zealand and Australia this week, with the mood markedly different from the Chinese premier’s visit seven years ago. Li is to arrive in New Zealand today, before traveling to Australia at the weekend, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Australia is the top supplier of iron ore to China, its largest trading partner, but there is competition for Australia’s rare earths needed for electric vehicles and defense from Western security allies. New Zealand was the first Western nation to strike a free-trade agreement with
Down a Tokyo street lined with bright signs, up narrow stairs and behind a windowless door is a “snack bar” long cherished by regulars but hidden from tourists — until now. Snack bars are cozy, retro establishments found across Japan, often crammed into small buildings and equipped with karaoke systems that echo late into the night. They are typically run by a woman nicknamed “mama” who chats to customers while serving drinks with nibbles such as nuts, dried squid or simple cooked dishes. Despite being a fixture of Japanese nightlife since the post-war era, the tucked-away bars’ tight space can be intimidating, especially
‘FRESH INFILTRATION’: A man was killed in a gun battle with security forces and later suspected rebels lobbed grenades and fired at a checkpoint in the Doda area A suspected militant was killed and seven members of security forces were wounded in clashes in Indian-administered Kashmir, police said yesterday. The first incident occurred late on Tuesday night in Hiranagar, a village near the frontier with Pakistan, which, like India, claims the Himalayan region in full. Security forces rushed to the border village, with a man killed in the resulting gunfight who police believed had crossed over from the Pakistan side. “This appears to be a fresh infiltration in which one terrorist was killed and the search for one more is ongoing,” Anand Jain, a top police officer, told reporters. Hours later, suspected
A brief boat ride from the thrumming nightclubs of Mykonos lies the UNESCO heritage site of Delos, one of the most important sanctuaries of the ancient Greek and Roman world. Surrounded by piercing azure waters, Delos’ 2,000-year-old buildings offer a microcosm of information on daily life during the Hellenistic and Roman periods. However, the site known for its temples guarded by stone lions could be gone forever in half a century, scientists warn. “Delos is condemned to disappear in around 50 years,” said Veronique Chankowski, head of the French archeological school of Athens, which has been excavating the site for the past 150