A federal jury has found a US citizen of Chinese descent not guilty of acting illegally acting as an agent of Beijing, following a six-day trial that concluded on Monday.
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Litang Liang of Brighton, Massachusetts, had been charged with two counts related to acting as a foreign agent without notifying the US attorney general, and faced 10 years or more in prison.
Federal prosecutors said that Liang, a hotel worker in his mid-60s, acted as an agent of the Chinese government by collecting information about Boston-area residents, organisations and dissidents and sharing the details with Beijing.
Specific activities enumerated by prosecutors include leading a counter-protest against pro-democracy activists from Hong Kong; providing photographs and other information about dissidents to Chinese diplomats; and suggesting potential “recruits” to China’s Ministry of Public Security.
Liang, who was arrested in 2023, denied acting under the control or direction of Chinese officials. He said he was simply expressing views and conducting activities that happen to align with the Chinese government, arguing that his communication with officials alone should not be grounds for suspicion.
“The jury’s verdict affirmed what we have always known: that Mr. Liang was never an agent of China and he was wrongly accused,” said defence lawyer Derege Demissie.