Two Chinese nationals have each been sentenced to 30 months in a US prison after admitting to carrying out covert intelligence activities for China’s Ministry of State Security.
Liren “Ryan” Lai, 40, and Yuance Chen, 39, will also serve three years of supervised release. Both pleaded guilty to conspiring to act, and acting, as agents of a foreign government without notifying the US Attorney General.
According to the Justice Department, their activities included arranging secret cash payments, collecting information about US military personnel and facilities, and helping identify service members as potential intelligence recruits.
Court documents showed that the operation began no later than May 2021. Lai recruited Chen and initially passed instructions between him and Chinese intelligence officers. Chen later received assignments directly.
The pair helped arrange covert payments totalling about $30,000. Investigators also documented the collection of photographs of a naval base, military recruits and serving sailors, along with personal information about potential targets.
FBI agents arrested both men in June 2025. The sentences were announced on Friday following their guilty pleas. United States Department of Justice.
