Taiwan-China Relations

US Government Cracks Down on Chinese Transnational Repression

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By Luffy Li/Tiffany Wong

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Taiwan's government is warning that the alleged Chinese spy who surveilled President Lai Ching-te's son in Seattle is not an isolated case. At least 126 Taiwanese have been confirmed targets of China's transnational repression, cases in which Chinese agents attempt to surveil, coerce or intimidate perceived opponents of the Chinese state overseas. 34-year old realtor Wanying "Heather" Zhang was arrested by the FBI on Sunday for acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government. Court documents allege that she traveled to Seattle in September 2025 to take pictures of Lai Ting-yu and his family at his home and sent license plate information to a Chinese government operative via WeChat. US authorities are pursuing the case and FBI Director Kash Patel condemned the alleged Chinese operation in the US, writing on X: "Foreign adversaries take note: America is NOT your playground."