Chinese prosecutor and ex-NYPD detective are among nine people charged with acting as spies to 'stalk and harass' US residents in a bid to pressure them to return home to China

Mine people were named in a federal indictment filed in Brooklyn on Thursday accusing them of working as illegal spies to stalk Chinese citizens in the US
The brazen plan included targeting a New Jersey man, who was supposedly wanted by the Chinese government for accepting bribes, and his family
One of the female defendants, Tu Lan, worked as a prosecutor with Hanyang People's Procuratorate
Lan is accused of traveling to the US and directing the harassment campaign
Those charged include: Tu Lan, Zhai Yongqiang, Hu Ji, Li Minjun and Zhu Feng. They remain at large
Ex-NYPD detective Michael McMahon, Zheng Congying and Zhu Yong were all arrested last year and will be arraigned in Brooklyn federal court at a later date
The defendants harassed the victims between 2017 and 2019
In one situation, they tried to enter the victim's home before taping a threatening note on the door in 2018

Published: 18:05 BST, 22 July 2021 | Updated: 18:55 BST, 22 July 2021

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A Chinese female prosecutor and a former New York City Police Department detective are among nine people charged with stalking and harassing US residents in a bid to pressure them to return home to China.

The nine people were named in a superseding federal indictment filed in Brooklyn on Thursday that accuses them of working as illegal spies to stalk Chinese citizens living in the US.

The indictment alleges that the nine defendants were acting on direction from officials in the People's Republic of China in a brazen campaign called Operation Fox Hunt.

Two defendants are also charged with obstructing a federal investigation into the operation.

The brazen plan included targeting a New Jersey man, who was supposedly wanted by the Chinese government for accepting bribes, and his family.

The New Jersey man is a former Chinese government employee.

The nine people were named in a superseding federal indictment filed in Brooklyn on Thursday that accuses them of working as illegal spies to stalk Chinese citizens living in the US. Pictured is one defendant Zheng Congying who was taken into custody last year

The defendants allegedly engaged in a campaign to 'threaten, harass, surveil and intimidate' the man and his family in a bid to force him to return to China to face charges.

One of the female defendants, Tu Lan, worked as a prosecutor with Hanyang People's Procuratorate.

Lan is accused of traveling to the US and directing the harassment campaign, according to the indictment.

She also allegedly ordered a co-conspirator to destroy evidence to obstruct the federal investigation into the operation.

Lan, as well as another defendant Zhai Yongqiang, were both added to the indictment on Thursday.

Charges against six others were first surfaced in October last year. One defendant's name remains under seal.

One of the prior defendants is Michael McMahon, who lives in New Jersey and is a retired NYPD detective.

The 53-year-old, who worked as a private investigator after retiring, is accused of working with other defendants to gather intelligence on and locate the New Jersey man and his wife.

McMahon has since claimed that he didn't know he was working for the Chinese government.

Those charged are: Tu Lan, Zhai Yongqiang, Hu Ji, Li Minjun and Zhu Feng. They remain at large.

Michael McMahon, Zheng Congying and Zhu Yong were all arrested last year and will be arraigned in Brooklyn federal court at a later date.

The indictment alleges that Tu Lan and Hu Ji took the New Jersey man's father from China to the US in April 2017 against his will and forced him to tell his son that his family back home would be harmed if he didn't return.

Authorities say the defendants conducted surveillance on a New Jersey man who was supposedly wanted back in China for accepting bribes. One of the defendants, Zhu Feng, was found to be carrying the above surveillance equipment

In one situation, two defendants drove to the New Jersey man's home and pounded on the front door in September 2018. After trying to force the door open, the defendants left a note - written in Chinese - that said: 'If you are willing to go back to the mainland and spend 10 years in prison, your wife and children will be all right. That's the end of this matter!'

Lan then returned to China and continued to direct the operation from there, according to the indictment.

Zhu Feng, Hu Ji and Zhu Yong are accused of working with McMahon to gather intelligence on the New Jersey family.

Lan allegedly directed one of the conspirators to 'delete all the chat content' between them.

The defendants continued to harass and stalk the victims, at the direction of the Chinese government, between 2017 and 2019, according to the indictment.

In one situation, two defendants drove to the New Jersey man's home and pounded on the front door in September 2018.

After trying to force the door open, the defendants left a note - written in Chinese - that said: 'If you are willing to go back to the mainland and spend 10 years in prison, your wife and children will be all right. That's the end of this matter!'

Between February 2019 and April 2019, other co-conspirators directed unsolicited packages to the home, which contained threatening letters and video messages.

'As alleged, the defendants, acting as agents of the PRC, carried out an illegal and clandestine campaign to harass and threaten targeted U.S. residents in order to force them to return to the PRC. Unregistered, roving agents of a foreign power are not permitted to engage in secret surveillance of U.S. residents on American soil, and their illegal conduct will be met with the full force of U.S. law,' Acting U.S. Attorney Kasulis said.

'To the extent the PRC seeks to repatriate its citizens to the PRC, its agents are required to register with the Attorney General of the United States, coordinate with U.S. officials, and adhere to U.S. laws and protocols.'

The US had previously issued warnings about Operation Fox Hunt, which they described as a 'rogue law enforcement' effort to suppress dissidents and critics of the PRC.

Officials said the PRC has used the operation to target hundreds of Chinese nationals living in the US rather going through legitimate law enforcement channels.