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Arcadia Councilwoman Eileen Wang. | Photo courtesy of the city of Arcadia
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Federal prosecutors have charged the campaign manager and reported fiancee of Arcadia City Councilwoman Eileen Wang with conspiring to influence a local election on behalf of the People’s Republic of China, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Yaoning “Mike” Sun, 64, of Chino Hills, was arrested Thursday for his alleged role in a decadeslong spy scheme aimed at influencing local elections to cultivate officials supportive of China-friendly policies, including opposition to Taiwan independence.
Two unnamed sources familiar with the investigation told the Times that Wang is the local politician listed as “Individual 1” in the criminal complaint against Sun.
Prosecutors’ court filing described Sun as Individual 1’s campaign manager and business partner and said the address Sun registered with the DMV was a home owned by Individual 1, now identified as Wang.
Wang has not spoken publicly about Sun’s arrest and has not confirmed their engagement. On Monday, Arcadia City Manager Dominic Lazzaretto issued a statement about Sun’s arrest and his connections to Wang:
“On Thursday, December 19, the City of Arcadia was notified of FBI activity on the 1000 block of Huntington Drive. The individual of primary interest to the FBI’s investigation was arrested on charges that he acted as an illegal agent of the People’s Republic of China. That person was identified as Yaoning ‘Mike’ Sun, who has no affiliation with the City of Arcadia. Sun made his initial appearance at the United States District Court for the Central District of California and no plea has yet been entered to our knowledge.
“Campaign filings submitted to Arcadia during the 2022 General Municipal Election listed Sun as the Treasurer for Arcadia’s District 3 Candidate Eileen Wang. Council Member Wang has spoken to the FBI. … She has stated that she intends to fully cooperate with federal authorities throughout this process.
“The investigation naturally raises concerns and questions about the extent of Sun’s involvement locally and throughout the region,” Lazzaretto continued. “At this time, Sun’s involvement is considered an isolated incident, with no known association with other members of the Arcadia City Council. Importantly, we can confirm that Sun had no involvement whatsoever with City of Arcadia business or decision-making.
“The City of Arcadia supports a thorough and comprehensive investigation by our federal partners into these serious allegations,” Lazzaretto said. “As this process unfolds, we will continue to inform and engage our residents on this matter.”
Sun is charged with acting as an illegal agent of a foreign power and conspiring with another man, Chen Jun, who was sentenced to federal prison last month for illegally acting as an agent of the People’s Republic of China and plotting to target U.S.-based practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice banned in China, according to the criminal complaint filed Dec. 17 in LA federal court.
Sun was the “campaign manager and close personal confidante” for the Southern California politician now identified as Wang, who ran in 2022 for the seat on the city council of a San Gabriel Valley city that was not named in court papers.
Sun allegedly communicated with Chen during the campaign about his efforts to get the politician elected.
“Chen discussed with Chinese government officials how the PRC could ‘influence’ local politicians in the United States, particularly on the issue of Taiwan,” according to prosecutors.
China has longstanding hostilities against Taiwan and opposes any formal declaration of its independence. China claims the island nation of 23.4 million people about 100 miles off the mainland coast is legally part of PRC territory, citing a 1971 United Nations General Assembly resolution.
Wang has not been charged with any crime, and it was unclear if she knew about the alleged activities by Sun or Chen on behalf of the Chinese government.
The Arcadia city website describes Wang as a longtime resident, educator and the “daughter of proud immigrants who came to California seeking their American Dream.”
During her campaign, Wang cited concerns about public safety and homelessness and vowed to be a “strong voice for her neighborhood and take a direct role in addressing resident and public concerns she had seen and heard throughout her 15 years of community service.”
Earlier this year, U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Monterey Park, honored Wang as one of the “2024 Congressional Women of the Year,” an honor “given to women nominated by people in their own cities and communities.” No explanation was provided about how Wang was nominated.
Former Arcadia Councilwoman April Verlato, who unsuccessfully ran against Chu in November for the 28th Congressional District seat, referenced an announcement of the award event that “describes an ‘exhaustive process’ to select the honorees. What was that process exactly in this case?” she said in an email to Arcadia Weekly.
In a statement Saturday to the Times, Chu said Wang had a history of public service and was the “first Asian American woman elected to the Arcadia City Council in 119 years. She was a leader in the community, helping to establish a new Health committee, supporting new affordable housing projects and implementing crossroads pallets at street intersections.
“When we honored her, the entire city council and the leaders of the Arcadia community came out to support her,” Chu said. “I do not personally know Mike Sun, nor does my husband. We have seen him accompany her to events, but we have never engaged in a conversation with him.”
Joaquin Lim, a former Walnut city councilman, told the Times the PRC has little to gain from a politician in office at the local level.
“That’s one of the angles an anticipation of this person running for higher office,” Lim said. “This is not just happening in America. It’s happening in England. It’s happening in Australia, it’s happening in Canada. When I read about Eileen, I said, ‘OK, well, I’m just surprised, in this case it’s the San Gabriel Valley.’ “
Not long after Wang’s election to represent Arcadia’s 3rd City Council District, Chen allegedly instructed Sun to prepare a report on the election. The report was later sent to Chinese government officials, who responded positively and expressed thanks, according to prosecutors.
Chen also sent a message to Wang saying that she was “doing a good job, I hope you can continue the good work, make Chinese people proud,” the federal complaint affidavit states.
About a month after the election, Chen arranged a meeting at a restaurant in Rowland Heights with Sun and others, a gathering that Chen described to a PRC official as a “core member lunch,” the affidavit alleges.
Court papers further claim Chen later described the lunch as “successful” because participants agreed to establish a “US-China Friendship Promotional Association.”
While Wang was not at the meeting, Chen described “the politician” as being part of the association with Sun serving as vice president. “This is the basic team dedicated for us,” Chen wrote to the Chinese government official, prosecutors alleged.
“This case highlights the breadth of the PRC’s relentless intelligence and malign influence activities targeting the United States,” Akil Davis, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s LAField Office, said in a statement.
Early last year, Sun and Chen wrote two reports for PRC officials, one of which requested an $80,000 budget for more pro-PRC operations and to combat “anti-China forces” in the U.S., the Justice Department alleges.
After Chen and Sun discussed a planned trip to China to meet with “leadership,” and after Chen instructed Sun to set up a meeting with the Chinese consul general in LA, Sun and Wang traveled to China in late August 2023, prosecutors said.
Sun faces up to 15 years in federal prison.
Updated Dec. 23, 2024, 12:19 p.m.
