Chinese Counterintelligence Doesn't Fool Around

Screen capture from 2 Jan 2015 SCMP
This is an amazing story in the South China Morning Post.

Typist sentenced to death in China for leaking military secrets

Worker said to have sold secrets about centre researching secret weapon to an unnamed foreign intelligence agency

A young typist who worked at a Chinese military manufacturer’s research centre that was developing a secret weapons system has been sentenced to death for spying for a foreign intelligence agency, according to a state-run media report.

 Yu Hongyang, a member of staff at an unnamed research office, was said to have damaged national security by leaking state secrets, the news website of the Global Times newspaper reported.

 He was caught by the Ministry of State Security for allegedly buying secret information and then selling it in an “extremely severe” case that warranted the death penalty, the report said.

 The foreign intelligence agency allegedly involved was not named.

 Yu was employed at the centre on its secretarial staff.

 The facility was involved in researching “a secret weapon that could vanquish the enemy in future battles”, the report said.

 Yu wanted more cash so started looking for other work.

 “His greed for money led him to post an online job search,” the report said.

 He was then contacted by a foreign intelligence agency posing as potential employer.

 Yu revealed basic information about the military research office during initial meetings with foreign intelligence staff, the report said.

 The foreign agency gave him cash and gifts and later asked him to give more detailed information about the site’s research work.

 “Despite that fact that Yu had been well briefed on secrecy, he caved in due to his intense materialism,” the newspaper commented.

 The report said that although Yu was a typist he was still able to get his hands on critical information that “trashed decades of research efforts on national security”.

 He was said to have stolen large quantities of highly confidential state secrets.

So, "enquiring minds want to know..."

  • Who bought the secrets?
  • What are the secrets? What is this super weapon?
  • Is it original, or stolen?
  • How often do the Chinese execute spies?
  • Why did the story become public -- as a warning?
Some of the comments are almost as interesting as the original story.

Sifu_628 Jan 3rd 2015 
8:38pm

Why would not a common man sell out, when the overwhelming majority of CCPC members are corrupt and are engaging in similar activities. Families of corrupt officials are living and studying Overseas and are spying for foreign intelligence agencies in exchange for money laundering services and protection from legal prosecution. This typist has been singled out, bad luck!

Beaker Jan 3rd 2015 12:41am

So, re-interpreted, un-named Chinese research institute is embarrassed by leaks showing what technologies they have been hacking from Boeing and Locheed Martin. Guy seems to be a money grubber with no principals. Death is OK.

I'm guessing this "Beaker" isn't Chris Hoff -- I doubt he would say "principals" instead of "principles."

Thanks to Mihoko Matsubara for inspiring this post.

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