A former CIA officer was arrested Friday on charges that he collaborated with a family member who also served in the CIA to send top-secret classified information to the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
The criminal charge against the prosecutor against Alexander Yuk Ching Ma was made insecure on Monday morning, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.
“The trail of Chinese espionage is long and, sadly, clashed with former U.S. intelligence officers who betrayed their colleagues, their country and its liberal democratic values to support an authoritarian communist regime,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers.
He added, “This betrayal is never worth it. Either away, or many years after they thought they were gone, we will find these betrayals and we will bring them to justice. To the Chinese intelligence services, these are For us, they are sad but urgent reminders of the need to stay vigilant. “
Ma, 67, is a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Hong Kong. According to court documents, he started working for the CIA in 1982 and kept a top secret clearance. Ma also signed several non-disclosure agreements, in which he acknowledged his duty to protect government secrets during his time at the CIA.
He left the agency in 1989 to live and work in Shanghai, China, before moving to Hawaii in 2001.
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“The alleged prosecutors are a sober reminder to our communities in Hawaii of the constant threat posed by those who try to endanger the security of our nation through spies,” said U.S. Attorney Kenji Price. Of particular concern are the criminal acts of those who serve in our nation’s intelligence community, but then they choose to betray their former colleagues and the nation-all-large by sharing classified information on national defense to China. “My office will continue to pursue espionage cases.”
The Department of Justice claims that court documents show that Ma and his family (identified as co-conspirator # 1) collaborated with each other and multiple Chinese intelligence officials to pass on classified information on national defense for nearly a decade.
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The criminal acts all began with a series of meetings in Hong Kong back in March 2001. The two accused traitors provided information to the Foreign Intelligence Service “about the CIA’s personnel, operations and methods of concealing communications,” he said. DOJ. Some of the assembly was captured on videotape and shows only $ 50,000 he received for supplying Intel.
The court documents accuse Ma of seeking employment with the FBI to continue with its Intel-for-cash scheme. He succeeded and was hired in 2004 by Bureau at the Honolulu Field Office.
While working as a contract linguist, Ma was in charge of documents and translations of Chinese languages. Over the next six years, Ma would copy, photograph and steal documents using ‘SECRET’. He even took some of the materials and images with him to China, to see for his traders. He received thousands of dollars in cash and expensive gifts in exchange for his services.
Ma confirmed his espionage activities to an FBI undercover employee in 2019. He thought the agent was a representative of the PRC intelligence service and accepted $ 2,000 in cash from him, thinking it was Chinese money.
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The former spy will make his first appearance before a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii on Tuesday.
He is officially accused of conspiracy to communicate information on national defense to assist a foreign government and is sentenced to a maximum prison term of life in prison if convicted.
Fox News’ Jake Gibson contributed to this report
