Two men from London have been jailed for spying on behalf of Hong Kong and Chinese authorities. Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 41, of Staines-upon-Thames, and Chung Biu Yuen, 66, of Hackney, appeared at the Old Bailey today (Thursday, June 18) where Wai was sentenced to 10 years and Yuen to eight years imprisonment.
On May 1, 2024, police arrested nine people breaking into a flat in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, which belonged to a woman who fled to the UK from Hong Kong in 2023. The woman was accused of fraud by her ex-employer in Hong Kong, although she denied this and claimed she was being set up. A group including Wai, a man named Matthew Trickett, and two former Hong Kong police officers traveled to the flat that day to try to find her.
They attempted to trick her into letting them in by pretending to be maintenance workers, even pouring water underneath her door and stating that she needed to let them in because of a water leak. The woman refused to admit them, so the group tried to force their way into her flat. However, shortly after entering the property, Counter Terrorism Police officers—who were carrying out their own investigation into the group—arrived and arrested them.
Convictions Under National Security Act
Wai and Yuen were both convicted on May 7 of assisting a foreign intelligence service, an offense under the National Security Act (NSA). Wai was also found guilty of misconduct in public office, relating to the misuse of Home Office systems he accessed while working as an officer in Border Force.
Commander Helen Flanagan, the Met Police's head of counter-terrorism policing, which led the investigation, said: “Wai and Yuen were targeting pro-democracy campaigners here in the UK and sending highly sensitive details about them and their families to the Hong Kong authorities.”
Yuen had kept in contact with the group from his base in London, where he was arrested. Wai, Yuen, and Trickett were subsequently charged, and others were released as the investigation progressed.
By analyzing the trio's electronic devices, detectives were able to piece together how Yuen, in his role as an office manager at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO), kept in touch with contacts linked to Hong Kong authorities. Yuen in turn tasked Wai with spying and surveillance activities focusing on UK-based pro-democracy campaigners.
Exploitation of Position
Detectives also found evidence that Wai had been exploiting his position as a Border Force officer, finding several examples where he accessed the files of Chinese and Hong Kong nationals in the UK. Although Wai claimed he was simply carrying out legitimate private security work linked to some of these individuals, evidence from Trickett’s phone showed a clear awareness by Wai and Trickett of the significance of the people they were targeting and the links back to the Hong Kong authorities.
Messages on Trickett’s phone also showed that Yuen was making payments to the pair—despite Yuen claiming that he was not involved in what they were doing. But evidence showed spying orders from Hong Kong were coming to Yuen, who then turned to Wai and Trickett to carry them out. This included a request from Hong Kong to Yuen for information about a specific individual. The same person’s details were then passed from Yuen to Wai, and officers found evidence of Wai carrying out illegal checks on Home Office computers for that same person.
Death of Third Man
Following authorization from the CPS, Yuen, Wai, and Trickett were all charged on May 12, 2024. After being charged and released on bail, Trickett was found dead in a park in Maidenhead on May 19, 2024. An inquest into Trickett’s death is expected to take place after the conclusion of these current criminal proceedings.
Commander Flanagan added: “This investigation was incredibly complex, with over 20 terabytes of data to trawl through, including thousands of messages and information in multiple languages. But despite significant challenges, we were able to show how Yuen and Wai were working with each other and that they were clearly aware this was for the benefit of the Hong Kong authorities to spy on pro-democracy campaigners here in the UK.
“This case should serve as a stark warning to anyone who might be involved in any private investigation work, that you must be very sure this is not being done for the benefit of a foreign state. If and where that happens, then you will likely face investigation, arrest, and potential prosecution under the National Security Act. And if you are convicted, then like Wai and Yuen, you will be facing extremely serious consequences.”
