Counterintelligence stories

Oct 4, 2026

California woman arrested for spying on Taiwan president's son for China

Wanying Zhang, a 34-year-old California resident and real estate agent, was arrested by the FBI at Los Angeles International Airport as she attempted to board a flight to Shanghai. She is accused of surveilling the family of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te on behalf of Beijing, allegedly sending photos and videos of the president's son and his family to Chinese officials.

Oct 4, 20269 sources

Aug 21, 2026

Australia charges dual Russian-Australian citizen with spying for Russia in Ukraine

Australian Federal Police charged Vladimir Teslov, a 27-year-old dual Russian-Australian citizen, with foreign interference for allegedly attempting to infiltrate the Ukrainian military and pass intelligence about Ukrainian military activities to Russian intelligence services.

Aug 21, 20265 sources

Top claims

▪The target of the surveillance was Lai Ting-yu, the U.S.-based son of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, who works as an engineer for Philips and lives with his wife and child.
▪During the September 2025 Seattle trip, Wanying Zhang photographed the family of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's son and sent license plate numbers to a Chinese government contact.
▪Wanying Zhang and an associate flew from Las Vegas to Seattle on September 1, 2025, rented a Nissan Rogue, and conducted surveillance outside the home of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's son.

People involved

Lai Ching-te

Subtopics

China’s technology & surveillance1 Foreign interference1 Russia-Ukraine war1 Taiwan & cross-strait policy1 U.S.–China relations1

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