Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians

Axios, Dec 8, 2020 (excerpt): … Between 2011 and 2015, (suspected spy) Fang Fang's activities brought her into contact with many of the Bay Area’s most prominent politicos.

• She volunteered for Ro Khanna's unsuccessful 2014 House bid, according to a former campus organizer and social media posts. (Khanna, a Democrat, was elected to the House in 2016.) Khanna's office said he remembers seeing Fang at several Indian American political gatherings but did not have further contact with her. Khanna's office said the FBI did not brief him on her activities. Khanna's 2014 campaign staff said that Fang's name does not appear in their staff records, though they said that their records do not include all volunteers.

Flyer for fundraiser for Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. Source: Facebook

• Fang helped with a fundraiser for Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) in 2013, according to a flyer from the event Fang shared on Facebook. She appeared in photos over multiple years with a host of California politicians, including Khanna, Swalwell, Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) and then-Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.).
• Gabbard "has no recollection of ever meeting or talking with her, nor any recollection of her playing a major role at the fundraiser," a spokesperson said in an email to Axios.
• Fremont City Councilmember Raj Salwan, whose name appears on the flyer, told Axios he was unaware of Fang's role in the event and her name was added to the flyer by other Asian American leaders.
• Chu’s office said they have no records of Christine Fang. Honda said he had no memory of meeting Fang.

From left: Fang with Fremont City Councilmember Raj Salwan (L) and then-U.S. House candidate Ro Khanna at a September 2013 fundraiser for Rep. Tulsi Gabbard; Fang helped organize a 2012 town hall for Rep. Judy Chu. Sources: Facebook

The bottom line: U.S. officials believe Fang's real reason for being in the U.S was to gather political intelligence and to influence rising U.S. officials on China-related issues….

read … Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians

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Chinese Spy Used Chinese Student Association as Cover

UKDM Dec 8, 2020 (excerpt) … Friends and acquaintances of Fang said she was in her late 20s to early 30s when she enrolled in California State University East Bay.

Axios reports that she served as president of both the Chinese Student Association and Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs (APAPA).

Fang reportedly used those positions to initially get her foot in the door with local political circles. She would invite lawmakers, political executives and Chinese consular officials to attend a series of prominent events she hosted.

Through a combination of fundraising, charisma and romantic relationships, Fang managed to place herself among Bay Area politicos. 

Many of Fang's alleged operations were done under the disguise of APAPA, a group promoting civic affairs for Asian Pacific Islanders, sources told Axios, until she emerged as a mainstay in Bay Area politics….

…a scroll through Fang's Facebook page reportedly showed she was friends with Swalwell's father and brother.

Their relationship began when Swalwell was a councilmember for Dublin City, California, and their earliest known interaction was facilitated through the Chinese Student Association.  

Swalwell would later become a Congressman in 2012. 

Fang portrayed herself 'to be the connector between the Asian American community and members of Congress.  

A source told Axios that Fang served as a 'bundler' during Swalwell's 2014 Congress re-election campaign on his behalf, meaning she convinced others to donate to his campaign operations. 

It's an ideal position for an intelligence operative to hold, considering it could strengthen their ties to the campaigning official. 

During this time, Fang reportedly facilitated potential intern assignments for Swawell's offices, including one placed in Washington D.C.  

But around 2015, a counterintelligence probe became so unnerved by Fang's behavior that they alerted Swalwell with a defense briefing from the FBI….

read … How Fang Fang the Chinese spy slept with two US mayors and targeted politicians - including one of the youngest members of the House - before slipping out of the US when the FBI came knocking