Two men first in British history to be found guilty of spying for China

Two men, Chi Leung Wai, a UK Border Force officer, and Chung Biu Yuen, a Hong Kong trade official, have been found guilty of spying for China. They are the first individuals in British history convicted of this offense. Wai, who also served as a special constable, was additionally found guilty of misconduct for unauthorized database searches. The pair allegedly surveilled dissidents and gathered intelligence on Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and British politicians. The operation was reportedly orchestrated by Yuen, who provided targets to Wai. A third accused man, Matthew Trickett, was found dead after being bailed. The jury could not reach a verdict on foreign interference charges.

A British court has convicted two men connected to the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in London of spying on pro-democracy activists. Bill Yuen Chung-biu, the office's manager, and Peter Wai Chi-leung were found guilty on Thursday of assisting a foreign intelligence service. The charges stem from their alleged actions two years prior, which brought the role of Hong Kong's overseas offices under scrutiny. Yuen, a former Hong Kong police superintendent, was accused of relaying surveillance requests from Hong Kong authorities to Wai while employed at the HKETO. This conviction highlights concerns about the activities of Hong Kong's trade offices and their alleged links to Chinese intelligence.