A British court sentenced Chi Leung “Peter” Wai to 10 years in prison and Chung Biu Yuen to eight years after convictions for assisting a foreign intelligence service. The case tested allegations of surveillance targeting Hong Kong dissidents in the United Kingdom through a criminal process.
The Crown Prosecution Service updated its account of the case on June 18, 2026, after sentencing at the Old Bailey. Both men were convicted under section 3 of the National Security Act 2023. Wai, a former UK Border Force officer and former City of London Police special constable, was also convicted of misconduct in public office after prosecutors presented evidence that he accessed Home Office databases without authority and shared personal information for improper purposes.
According to the CPS, Yuen had worked at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London. Prosecutors presented digital and financial evidence that the defendants were tasked, paid and reporting to people linked to Hong Kong police and government bodies. The CPS said the men researched dissidents living in Britain, including addresses, vehicles and social-media accounts.
What the verdicts do—and do not—establish
The convictions establish that the jury found the defendants knowingly agreed to conduct information-gathering and surveillance likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service. The jury did not reach verdicts on separate foreign-interference charges under section 13. Those charges should not be described as proved.
The convictions concern these defendants and the evidence presented against them. They do not justify collective suspicion toward every employee of a Hong Kong office or every overseas Chinese organization.
Free China Movement assessment
Credible reports of cross-border intimidation should be treated as public-safety and rule-of-law matters. Governments should protect threatened communities, secure personal data held by public agencies and investigate foreign-directed surveillance while preserving due process and evidence-based attribution.