The US, on Thursday, charged seven Chinese nationals with criminal charges over an alleged plot to repatriate one of them to China. According to the justice department, the defendants were engaged in Beijing’s Operation Fox Hunt which involve groups that covertly try to send expatriates back to China.
Operation Fox Hunt is an initiative by the Chinese government targetting wealthy citizens, who have been accused of corruption and fled with large amounts of money. The charges against the seven individuals include, 'to act in the US as illegal agents of the People’s Republic of China.' The justice department said that the Chinese government has taken up such law enforcement actions on US soil without the approval of, or coordination with, Washington.
The seven accused in the case are Quanzhong An, 55, of Roslyn, New York his daughter Guangyang An, 34, and five others still in China: Tian Peng, Chenghua Chen, Chunde Ming, Xuexin Hou, and Weidong Yuan. Of these Quanzhong An, 55, of Roslyn, New York his daughter Guangyang An, 34 have been arrested the others are still at large.
Quanzhong An has allegedly been working on behalf of China's Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection to intimidate a Chinese man and his son living in the US. The individuals coerced a relative of the family to travel to the US so that they could convince the father to travel back to the Country.