Californian mayor steps down, admits to working for Chinese government
Eileen Wang, the mayor of a city in California, has stepped down after being charged with working on behalf of the Chinese government.
On Monday (May 11th), the Department of Justice charged the mayor of Arcadia, which is situated in southern California, with acting as an illegal agent for China.
Following the charge, Wang stood down from her role and has agreed to plead guilty, which could lead to the 58-year-old serving a 10-year prison sentence.
Speaking on behalf of their client, Wang’s lawyers Jason Liang and Brian Sun said “she apologises and is sorry for the mistakes she has made in her personal life”.
They added, “Her love and devotion for the Arcadia community have not changed and did not waver.’
Wang, who was a Republican until switching allegiances to the Democrats in 2022, was elected to the five-person Arcadia City Council in 2022, which rotates the role of mayor between the officials.
City manager Dominic Lazzaretto insisted in a statement, “We want to be clear: this investigation concerns individual conduct, and the charges are for conduct that ceased after Ms. Wang was sworn into office in December 2022.”
Wang has been accused by the Department of Justice of working alongside Yaoning ‘Mike’ Sun in operating the US News Center, a site that claimed to serve the Chinese population of Arcadia.
Per the BBC, they are accused of sharing pre-written news articles that were sent through WeChat from a Chinese governmental official.
According to CNN, one piece that was published on US News Center that was linked to a governmental official denied the use of forced labour camps and the abuse of Urgyhers.
Sun is currently serving a four-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the same charge as Wang last year.