Two Chinese nationals face serious charges after they allegedly acted as agents of the People's Republic of China’s government to collect intelligence about US Navy service members and bases, while also recruiting other military members to carry out tasks for the country’s main foreign intelligence service, the Ministry of State Security (MSS), Report informs via Fox News.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Chinese national Yuance Chen, who resides in Happy Valley, Oregon, and Liren Lai, who traveled to Houston on a tourist visa in April 2025, were arrested on Friday. Both individuals face charges of overseeing and carrying out various clandestine intelligence tasks in the US on behalf of the Ministry of State Security.
Along with assisting with the recruitment of potential MSS assets and gathering intel about service members and bases, the two men are accused of facilitating a "dead drop" payment of cash on behalf of the MSS.
The FBI arrested both men on Friday – Chen was arrested in Happy Valley while Lai was arrested in Houston – with help from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).
"Today’s arrests reflect the FBI’s unwavering commitment to protecting our national security and safeguarding the integrity of our military," FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital. "The individuals charged were acting on behalf of a hostile foreign intelligence service — part of the Chinese Communist Party’s broader effort to infiltrate and undermine our institutions. Thanks to outstanding coordination with our partners, including NCIS, we disrupted those efforts and sent a clear message: the United States will not tolerate espionage on American soil. Our counterintelligence operations remain focused, vigilant, and relentless."
Citing a criminal complaint filed in the Northern District of California, the DOJ said the government of the PRC conducts intelligence activities against the US using various means, including the MSS, which is involved with collecting intelligence on civilians. The MSS is also responsible for foreign intelligence, counterintelligence and political security.
The complaint alleges that Lai recruited Chen to work for the MSS in 2021.