Jun Wei Yeo, also known as Dickson Yeo, pled guilty on Friday to acting within the US as an illegal agent of a foreign power without first notifying the Attorney General, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 951.  Yeo pled guilty via videoconference before the US District Court for the District of Columbia. 

Yeo admitted to the FBI that, at the direction of Chinese intelligence officials, he created a fake consulting company to target US government employees and an Army officer. The company had the same name as a prominent US consulting firm that conducts public and government relations. Yeo posted job advertisements for the company. Almost all of the resumes Yeo received were from US military and government personnel, and he gave resumes of interest to a Chinese intelligence operative. The objective was to receive sensitive US government information. 

Yeo also used a professional networking site to target individuals that would have access to sensitive information. Chinese intelligence officials guided him to recruit vulnerable individuals, such as those that were experiencing financial difficulties. In addition, Yeo recruited others in the US to obtain sensitive information for the Chinese government.

“The Chinese Government uses an array of duplicity to obtain sensitive information from unsuspecting Americans. Yeo was central to one such scheme, using career networking sites and a false consulting firm to lure Americans who might be of interest to the Chinese government.  This is yet another example of the Chinese government’s exploitation of the openness of American society,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s National Security Division John C. Demers.

The maximum penalty for a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 951 is 10 years in prison.