Florida Telecommunications and IT Worker Sentenced to Four Years for Acting as Chinese Agent in U.S

Ping Li, 59, of Wesley Chapel, Florida, was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for conspiring to act as an agent of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) without notifying the U.S. Attorney General. Alongside his prison term, Li was fined $250,000 and will serve three years of supervised release.

Decade-Long Espionage Activity

Li, a U.S. citizen originally from the PRC, admitted to working under the direction of the PRC’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) since at least 2012. The MSS, responsible for civilian intelligence gathering, directed Li to collect sensitive information on Chinese dissidents, Falun Gong practitioners, pro-democracy advocates, and U.S.-based organizations.

Court records reveal that Li provided the MSS with corporate information from his employers—a U.S. telecommunications company and an international IT firm—and other intelligence. He maintained communication with MSS officers via anonymous accounts and traveled to China for in-person meetings.

Key Instances of Espionage

• August 2012: Li provided the MSS with the name and biographical details of a Falun Gong practitioner in St. Petersburg, Florida.
• March 2015: Li shared information on his U.S. employer’s branch offices in the PRC at the MSS’s request.
• May 2021: Li supplied information about hacking events targeting U.S. companies, including a widely reported cyberattack linked to the Chinese government.
• March 2022: Li delivered details about his new employer and cybersecurity training materials on the same day they were requested by the MSS.

Investigation and Sentencing

Li’s activities came under FBI scrutiny after years of collaboration with the MSS. His actions included sharing sensitive information about U.S. companies and assisting the MSS in monitoring individuals of interest to the PRC government.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel J. Marcet, Karyna Valdes, and Jordan Howard, along with Trial Attorney Scott Claffee of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.