The US Department of Justice announced Monday that the FBI have arrested two people on charges of operating a secret police station in New York City on behalf of China’s regime — not unlike the Chinese police stations that have operated across Canada, and still are in some cases.
According to The Epoch Times, US prosecutors say Lu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, conspired to work as agents of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and took orders from the regime in order to track down and silence Chinese dissidents living in America.
The police station is believed to be one of more than 100 overseas stations operated by the Chinese regime in 53 countries, according to Spain-based nonprofit Safeguard Defenders.
On Tuesday, The Globe and Mail reported that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation said that one of the men facing charges had a photo on his phone outlining similar plans to open such a station in Canada.
A document filed in a Brooklyn federal court this month said Lu’s smartphone contained a photograph of ceremonies to commemorate the opening of Chinese overseas police stations in five countries, including Canada.
In November, the RCMP announced it was formally probing the issue of the CCP police stations on Canadian soil, which included at least three in the Greater Toronto Area.
Speaking at the House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs on March 2, RCMP’s deputy commissioner of federal policing, Michael Duheme, said four overseas stations functioning across Canada have “ceased” operations.
The RCMP chose to disrupt operations of the stations rather than lay charges, The Epoch Times reports. They are now investigating two more alleged Chinese police stations in Montreal and its suburb of Brossard.
“We are carrying out police actions aimed at detecting and disrupting these foreign state-backed criminal activities, which may threaten the safety of persons living in Canada,” the RCMP said in a March 9 statement to The Epoch Times.
City councillor Xixi Li oversaw the two suspected organizations, Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud (CSQRS) and the Service à la famille chinoise du Grand Montréal (SFCGM), which provide multifaceted services to Chinese and Asian communities.
Amid the ongoing RCMP investigation, Brossard Mayor Doreen Assaad has asked Li to recuse herself from her role.
Research conducted by Rapid Response Mechanism Canada (RRMC) obtained by CTV News in June found that the Chinese government allegedly intervened in the 2021 Canadian federal election to influence Canadians not to vote for the Conservatives.
Justin Trudeau’s chief of staff, Katie Telford, appeared before members of parliament to answer questions about what the Liberal government knew about China’s interference in Canadian elections on Friday. She revealed very little, repeatedly citing cabinet confidence.
