August M
Trusting the people hired to protect our neighborhoods is a basic part of everyday safety.
When those same guardians secretly serve a foreign superpower, the betrayal cuts deep into a community’s sense of security, reports Digi24.ro.
Secret police operations
Two former police officers just received heavy prison sentences in London for spying on behalf of Hong Kong and China. After a high-profile trial at the Old Bailey, a judge handed down terms of eight and ten years. According to a report by Digi24.ro, the pair tracked pro-democracy activists and politicians who criticized Beijing. The targets included Conservative lawmaker Iain Duncan Smith.
The convicted men are 66-year-old Chung Biu Yuen and 41-year-old Chi Leung Wai. Yuen used to be a senior Hong Kong police officer. He later moved into a government trade role in London. Meanwhile, Wai worked directly for the City of London police and the UK Border Control Service.
Investigators proved that Wai used his position to gather intelligence on instructions passed down from Hong Kong. Helen Flanagan, head of the London Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, outlined the severe breach after the sentencing.
A stern warning
“Wai and Yuen targeted pro-democracy activists in the UK and sent highly sensitive information about them and their families to the Hong Kong authorities,” Flanagan stated. She added that the convictions should serve as a stern warning.
The case has sparked massive political fallout in the United Kingdom. Tens of thousands of Hong Kong citizens fled to Britain after Beijing passed a repressive security law in 2020. Security Minister Angela Eagle made the government’s stance clear.
“We will continue to hold China to account and take action against anything that endangers the safety of people in our country. This includes the Hong Kong Police’s use of arrest warrants and bounties that encourage illegal behaviour on British soil,” Eagle said in an official statement.
Meanwhile, foreign officials reacted with anger. A Hong Kong government spokesman told AFP that the claims were “baseless accusations” and accused British authorities of manipulating the trial. The defendants maintained their innocence throughout.
Sources: Digi24.ro, AFP
