“Overseas police stations”: allegations and a US prosecution
Alleged: Reported or claimed; not established in the public record.
In 2022 the NGO Safeguard Defenders reported that public security bureaus from two Chinese provinces had set up 54 “overseas police service centres” in 21 countries. On 17 April 2023 the US Justice Department announced the arrest of two men, Lu Jianwang and Chen Jinping, over an alleged overseas police station in New York. The Chinese embassy in Canada described such sites as “service stations” staffed by volunteers who are not police officers.
Documented
The DOJ complaint charges conspiracy to act as agents of the PRC and obstruction; the DOJ notes the charges “are merely an allegation”. The Dutch foreign ministry called the outposts illegal, and China’s foreign ministry rejected the Dutch allegations.
Claimed, disputed or not established
Safeguard Defenders says the centres run “persuasion operations” to coerce dissidents to return, which China denies. The agency involved is the Ministry of Public Security, not the MSS. This site did not verify the NGO’s count independently.
Sources (opened in a new tab)
- US DOJ: Two arrested for operating illegal overseas police station (17 Apr 2023) ↗https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/two-arrested-operating-illegal-overseas-police-station-chinese-government
- The Guardian: Canada investigates secret Chinese police stations (27 Oct 2022) ↗https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/27/canada-secret-chinese-police-stations-investigation
- BBC: Dutch investigation into Chinese police outposts ↗https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-63395617
Connected
- Section: China
- Countries: China
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