Beijing slams UK after manager of Hong Kong trade office in London, 2 others hit with spying charges
- Bill Yuen, 63, Peter Wai, 38, and Matthew Trickett, 37, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday
- Yuen is office manager of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London
Three men – including a Hong Kong public officer – have been charged in Britain with conducting spying activities by allegedly carrying out surveillance against dissidents from the city, prompting strong condemnation from Beijing which called the case “pure fabrication”.
In a strongly worded statement, the Chinese embassy in London said on Monday that Beijing had lodged stern representations with Britain over the case, urging it to immediately stop all kinds of “anti-China political manipulation” and ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the country’s citizens in the UK.
“China firmly opposes and strongly condemns the British pure fabrication of so-called cases and unreasonable accusations against the Hong Kong SAR government,” it said.
“The UK arbitrarily harasses, arrests and detains Chinese citizens in the UK under the pretext of justice and national security. This is a serious provocation to China and a serious violation of the basic norms of international relations.”
The three suspects, including Bill Yuen Chung-biu, 63, who serves as an office manager of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in London, were granted bail about 30 minutes after they appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
Yuen, Peter Wai Chi-leung, 38, and Matthew Trickett, 37, were charged with two offences under the National Security Act, passed last year to target threats from foreign states. Yuen and Wai both have dual British and Chinese nationality.
They have been charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service and foreign interference between December 2023 and May this year. The defendants had to surrender their passports and the case was adjourned until May 24.
They were also ordered to refrain from any direct or indirect contact with witnesses. They are required to report to police the model of any phones they possess and are prohibited from deleting their internet history. Police also have the right to inspect the defendants’ phones upon request.
Two representatives from the HKETO in London, Deputy Director-General Amy Wong Hoi-ling and Assistant Director-General Stanley Woo Man-hong, attended Monday’s court hearing.
Beijing’s foreign ministry arm in Hong Kong also criticised the British move, saying the UK had abused the name of national security and ignored basic human rights protections.
“This not only violates the spirit of the rule of law, but is also naked political manipulation. Its sinister intentions of interfering in Hong Kong affairs and shielding anti-China elements and disrupting Hong Kong are clearly exposed,” a spokesman said.
Following the court hearing, a Hong Kong government spokesman on Monday night said it had demanded the United Kingdom provide full details of the alleged matter, and was awaiting a response.
“The HKSAR government has seriously demanded the UK side fairly handle the matter, effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office’s office manager who was alleged to be involved, and ensure that the normal work of the Economic and Trade Office is not affected,” he said.
It is understood that Wai, a City of London Police special constable, is also the director and founder of D5 Security, a firm that advertises itself as an independent private security company based in Britain, providing security and staffing services for individuals, families and businesses based in the UK, mainland China and Hong Kong.
Trickett is an officer of the Immigration Enforcement agency and also a director of MTR Consultancy, a firm primarily focused on security, surveillance and private investigations.
The trio are accused of breaching the law by undertaking “information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service carrying out UK-related activities” between last December 20 and May 2 this year.
They are also alleged to have committed the foreign interference offence by engaging in prohibited conduct – forcing entry into a UK residence, being reckless as to whether the act would have an interference effect – on May 1.
It is not clear whom the trio were allegedly spying on. But it is understood that former student leader Nathan Law Kwun-chung who has lived in the UK since 2020 when Beijing imposed the national security law on the city could have been among their alleged targets.
Law is one of 13 overseas activists with HK$1 million (US$127,700) bounties placed on their heads by Hong Kong police for information leading to their arrest for allegedly violating the national security law.
Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, said the alleged espionage activities were related to Hong Kong. He added that the investigation was ongoing.
British police said the charges laid on the trio were not linked to a separate investigation involving Russia, with Murphy adding that “while these offences are concerning, I want to reassure the public that we do not believe there to be any wider threat to them”.
Police added that a number of arrests were made and searches carried out across England as part of the investigation. Seven men and one woman who were not charged were released from custody.
Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, convenor of the government’s key decision-making Executive Council, said she expected solemn representations would be lodged against Britain by Beijing and the Hong Kong administration. She said the government should also offer legal help to the officer involved.
Assisting a foreign intelligence service was newly created as part of espionage offences in the National Security Act and carries a maximum 14-year prison sentence or a fine, or both. The foreign interference offence also carries the same penalty.
There are 14 HKETOs outside mainland China including three in the United States, located in Washington, New York and San Francisco, and one in London.
The offices, which primarily carry out trade promotion and cultural diplomacy responsibilities, are not diplomatic missions because Hong Kong is not a sovereign state. But they do have some of the privileges and immunities of diplomatic missions granted in many countries.
Additional reporting by Ezra Cheung
