China sentences U.S. citizen to life in prison on spying charges

[mountaineer]

China sentences U.S. citizen to life in prison on spying charges
By Associated Press via Washington Times
Sunday, May 14, 2023

BEIJING (AP) — China sentenced a 78-year-old United States citizen to life in prison Monday on spying charges, in a case that could exacerbate the deterioration in ties between Beijing and Washington over recent years.

Details of the charges against John Shing-Wan Leung, who also holds permanent residency in Hong Kong, have not been publicly released.

Leung was detained April 15, 2021, by the local bureau of China‘s counterintelligence agency in the southeastern city of Suzhou, according to a statement posted by the city’s intermediate court on its social media site.  ...

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing said it was aware of the case, but could not comment further due to privacy concerns. “The Department of State has no greater priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas,” the embassy said in the emailed statement. ...

[GtHawk]

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing said it was aware of the case, but could not comment further due to privacy concerns. “The Department of State has no greater priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas,” the embassy said in the emailed statement. ...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgMD66_yBu0

[berdie]

Wow! 78 years old.

[mountaineer]

John Shing-wan Leung, American citizen, sentenced to life in prison in China
May 15, 2023 / 9:50 AM / AFP via CBS News

China has sentenced a 78-year-old U.S. citizen to life in prison for espionage, a court said Monday, but revealed few details about the previously unreported case.

Such heavy terms are relatively rare for foreign citizens in China, and the jailing of American passport holder John Shing-wan Leung is likely to further strain already-damaged ties between Beijing and Washington.

Leung, who is also a Hong Kong permanent resident, "was found guilty of espionage, sentenced to life imprisonment, deprived of political rights for life," said a statement from the Intermediate People's Court in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou.

Suzhou authorities "took compulsory measures according to the law" against Leung in April 2021, it said, without specifying when he had been taken into custody.  ...