A Chinese man accused of running a secret Chinese police station in Manhattan’s Chinatown by hanging a sign for his hometown association has pleaded guilty, according to foreign media outlets including the British daily Guardian, which reported on the 18th. Chinese American Chen Jinping, 60, was brought to trial on charges of opening and operating an illegal secret police station affiliated with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security in Manhattan. He pleaded guilty during a hearing at the Eastern District of New York on that day.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which led the investigation, stated that Chen Jinping admitted to playing a role in setting up the illegal police station “to further China’s criminal and repressive objectives that directly violate the sovereignty of the United States.” Based on his guilty plea, Chen Jinping could face up to five years in prison when his sentencing is scheduled for next year.
Lu Jianwang, 62, who was indicted alongside Chen, denied the charges. The two were previously indicted on charges of assisting in activities such as monitoring people critical of the Chinese government from an office in Manhattan’s Chinatown, which displayed a sign for the “Changle Gonghoe,” a Fujian Province-based association. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has denied the existence of the secret police station.