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Mass. Man Indicted for Acting as an Agent for Chinese Government

By Tom Marino | May 15, 2023
Last Updated: May 15, 2023

BOSTON – The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Monday that a Massachusetts man arrested on Tuesday, May 9, has been indicted for allegedly providing information on individuals from the Boston area and acting as an agent for the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

Litang Liang, 63, of Brighton, was indicted on charges of acting as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the U.S. Attorney General and one count of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government without v the U.S. Attorney General.

According the DOJ Office of Public Affairs, from around 22018 to at least 2022, Liang allegedly provided information on members and leaders of Boston-area Chinese family associations and community organizations with pro-Taiwan leanings and information on anti-PRC dissidents to PRC officials. The DOJ alleges Liang provided PRC officials with:

  • The identity of an individual Liang accused of having “sabotaged” PRC flags in Chinatown in October 2018;
  • Video of a dissident attending the “Boston Stands with Hong Kong,” march in August 2019; and
  • Photographs of anti-PRC dissidents in front of Boston Public Library in 2019.

The DOJ says Liang also allegedly provided names of potential recruits to the PRC’s Ministry of Public Security. He also provided information to PRC officials formerly in the United States and the United Front Work Department, which reports directly to the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

“We allege that Mr. Liang engaged in a series of acts on behalf of the PRC government including providing information on Boston-area residents, organizations and dissidents to PRC government officials – potentially placing people at risk here in Massachusetts and abroad,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Rachel Rollins.  “Attempts to repress constitutionally protected rights here in the United States will never be tolerated. Anyone who infringes upon those rights on American soil will be identified and held to account.”

The charge of acting as an agent of a foreign government without providing notification to the U.S. Attorney General provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government without providing notification to the U.S. Attorney General provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.

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