A court in London, United Kingdom ruled on May 7 that two men are guilty of assisting Hong Kong and Chinese Communist Party authorities in monitoring pro-democracy dissidents in the UK, in violation of Britain’s national security law. This is one of the first major prosecutions under the recently expanded National Security Act 2023.
The two defendants are: Yuan Songbiao, 66, a retired senior superintendent of the Hong Kong police and Wei Zhiliang, 38, a former UK immigration border officer, as per several local reports.
Both hold Hong Kong and British passports. They were charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service and for foreign interference.
After six days of deliberation beginning April 29, the jury returned a 10–2 majority verdict. Both charges fall under the UK’s National Security Act 2023. Wei Zhiliang also faced an additional charge of misconduct in public office.
However, the jury could not reach a unanimous decision on the foreign interference charges against both defendants.
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Case details
According to the case details, between December 2023 and May 2024, the two defendants assisted a foreign intelligence agency in collecting intelligence and carrying out hostile surveillance activities.
In relation to the misconduct in public office charge against Wei Zhiliang, prosecutors alleged that while he was working as a UK border officer, he used his official authority to access data on Hong Kong dissidents stored in the UK Home Office database.
Communication records presented in court showed that the defendants referred to pro-democracy activists as “cockroaches” during discussions of their plans. They also allegedly conducted surveillance on British political figures.
The case is regarded as the first conviction in the United Kingdom involving alleged Chinese Communist Party-linked espionage activity.
There was originally a third defendant in the case, Matthew Trickett, but he was found dead in a park shortly after being charged.
At present, Yuan Songbiao and Wei Zhiliang are awaiting sentencing and could face up to 14 years in prison.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has firmly rejected all allegations relating to the Hong Kong government and its London Economic and Trade Office.
UK response and diplomatic tensions
According to a report by FTV News, the case has sharply escalated tensions in UK–China relations.
UK Security Minister Dan Jarvis said he would summon the Chinese ambassador to Britain, stating that the UK “will not tolerate such activities on British soil,” according to CNN reports.
In response, the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United Kingdom dismissed the accusations as “fabricated,” reported The Standard, a Hong Kong newspaper.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has recently sought to improve relations with China, but a series of espionage-related cases has become a major obstacle in bilateral ties.
Observers argue that the convictions confirm long-standing fears within Hong Kong communities abroad are not paranoia, but reflect a real and ongoing threat.
Allegations of ‘shadow police’ network
Earlier reporting by the BBC stated that prosecutor Duncan Atkinson KC described the defendants in his opening statement as operating a “shadow police” network for Hong Kong on UK soil.
This network allegedly monitored Hong Kong pro-democracy activists in Britain, including Nathan Law and Finn Lau, and infiltrated local Hong Kong diaspora communities.
The prosecution also alleged that at least three retired senior Hong Kong police officers participated in and directed this “shadow police network,” aiming to extend Hong Kong authorities’ influence beyond their jurisdiction.
The case is the first since the Handover of Hong Kong involving allegations that serving or former officials engaged in espionage activities abroad. The case has been marked by unusual developments, including the death of a defendant before trial. However, Hong Kong mainstream media coverage has been notably limited despite its international attention.
In recent years, the United Kingdom has seen a series of alleged espionage-related cases, which some commentators say reflect growing concerns about Chinese influence operations in Britain.
In 2023, a national security case that shocked British politics involved what was described as a “Chinese spy in Parliament” controversy. The individuals involved were Christopher Cash, a former researcher for the UK Conservative Party, and Christopher Berry, a British national who had worked as a teacher in China.
The two were accused of violating the UK’s Official Secrets Act 1911 between December 2021 and February 2023, allegedly collecting and passing on politically sensitive information that could harm UK national security interests on behalf of China.
However, on Sept. 15, 2025—about one month before the scheduled trial—the Crown Prosecution Service unexpectedly dropped all espionage charges, citing “insufficient evidence.”
The decision to discontinue the case surprised many in British political circles and sparked debate over whether political considerations in UK-China relations may have influenced the judicial process.
