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Originally posted by the Voice of America.
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3 men charged in UK with assisting Hong Kong intelligence service
by Associated Press
London --
British police have charged three men with assisting the Hong Kong
intelligence service amid growing concern that hostile states are
trying to interfere with democracy and economic activity in the U.K.
The three men were among 11 people arrested earlier this month in
Yorkshire and London by counterterrorism police using provisions of a
new law that allows suspects in national security and espionage cases
to be detained without warrant. The eight other suspects were released
without charge.
Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, Matthew Trickett, 37, and Chung Biu Yuen,
63, are also charged with foreign interference, the Metropolitan Police
Service said. They will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on
Monday.
"A number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England
as part of this investigation," Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the
Met's counterterrorism command, said in a statement. "While led from
London, the Counter Terrorism Policing network has been crucial to
disrupting this activity."
The announcement comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak prepares to
deliver a speech on Monday in which he is expected to say that Britain
is facing an increasingly dangerous future due to threats from an "axis
of authoritarian states," including Russia, China, Iran and North
Korea. Tensions with China flared last year after a parliamentary
researcher was arrested on suspicion of spying for Beijing, charges
that Chinese officials called a "malicious smear."
Hong Kong's security bureau, Hong Kong police and the office of China's
foreign ministry in Hong Kong didn't immediately respond to requests
for comment.
The British government last year passed a new national security act
that gave police additional powers to tackle foreign espionage. The
legislation was needed to combat the "ever-evolving" threat of foreign
interference and in "response to the threat of hostile activity from
states targeting the U.K.'s democracy, economy, and values," the
government said.
The arrests in the current case were made on May 1 and 2. The
investigation is continuing, police said.
#hong-kong #china #uk #espionage #counterterrorism #metropolitan-police #met #the-met