Two Chinese spies and a Chinese national accused of spreading child pornography were part of a prisoner swap at the White House as Biden’s presidency nears the end.
On November 22, Biden granted clemency to Yanjun Xu, Ji Chaoqun, and Shanlin Jin.
Their releases were part of a prisoner exchange that returned three wrongfully detained Americans from Chinese custody: Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung.
The three Americans returned to the United States before Thanksgiving.
CHINA DENIES NEW REPORT LINKING THE CCP TO FOUR SITES IN CUBA ALLEGEDLY USED TO SPY ON THE US
Mark Swidan was arrested in China in 2012 on drug charges that the UN says are not legitimate. (Mark Swidan Family)
Harrison Li holds a photo of his father, Kai Li, in Palo Alto, California, in January. (AP/Jeff Chiu)
Xu and Chaoqun were both Chinese nationals convicted of espionage in the United States.
Xu, according to a release of the Justice Department, was the first Chinese government intelligence officer to be extradited to the United States to be tried and sentenced to 20 years.
According to court documents, Xu targeted American aviation companies, recruited employees to travel to China, and requested their proprietary information, all on behalf of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) government.
BIDEN LEAVES OFFICE WITH LOWEST APPROVAL IN 16 YEARS, FOX NEWS POLLS SHOW
In one example, noted in court documents, Xu attempted to steal technology related to GE Aviation Exclusive composite aircraft engine fan module, which no other company in the world has been able to duplicate, for the benefit of the Chinese State.
The Justice Department said Xu spoke openly about his effort to steal U.S. military information as well as commercial aviation trade secrets.
Yanjun Xu, the first Chinese spy extradited to the United States to stand trial, was convicted in 2021 of conspiracy and attempting to commit economic espionage and theft of trade secrets. (US District Court)
In September 2023, a federal jury in Chicago convicted Ji Chaoqun, 31, of conspiracy to act as an agent of China’s Ministry of State Security without notifying the U.S. attorney general, acting as a spy in the United States, and lying. on a government form about your contacts with foreign agencies. (Fox 32)
Chaoqun was arrested and convicted after working with Xu on behalf of the CCP.
The federal agency said Xu recruited and “managed” Chaoqun, who was stationed in Chicago for the duration of the scheme.
The Justice Department said Xu directed Chaoqun to collect “biographical information about individuals to potentially recruit them to work with them.”
“Xu’s handling and placement of a spy within the United States to obtain information on aviation technology and employees is yet another facet of Xu’s heinous crimes toward the United States and further justifies the significant sentence.” prison sentence you received today,” U.S. Attorney Parker said at the time of the couple’s sentencing.
Jin was serving his sentence after being found guilty of possessing more than 47,000 images of child pornography while he was a doctoral student at Southern Methodist University in Dallas in 2021.
President Joe Biden delivers a speech on the latest developments in Syria from the Roosevelt Room of the White House on December 8, 2024, in Washington, DC. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
Biden commuted the sentences of 1,499 people on Thursday. He is also pardoning 39 people who were convicted of non-violent crimes.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
President-elect Trump will take office in just over a month, on January 20. He has said he will immediately pardon those convicted of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
