Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang has been charged by federal prosecutors with acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese government, according to a bombshell announcement from the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday.
Wang, 58, who currently serves as mayor of the Los Angeles County city of Arcadia, allegedly worked with Chinese Communist Party-linked officials to spread pro-Beijing propaganda inside the United States while concealing her relationship with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), federal authorities said.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. Prosecutors also revealed that Wang has already agreed to plead guilty as part of a plea agreement filed in federal court.
“Individuals in our country who covertly do the bidding of foreign governments undermine our democracy,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg called the situation “deeply concerning,” particularly because Wang allegedly maintained undisclosed ties to the Chinese government while holding public office.
According to court documents, Wang and Yaoning “Mike” Sun, a Chino Hills man who was previously sentenced to four years in prison in a related case, worked together between 2020 and 2022 under the direction of Chinese government officials.
🚨 HOLY CRAP! Arcadia, California Mayor Eileen Wang (D) has just pleaded guilty to acting as an ILLEGAL CHINESE AGENT
And she obtained elected office, in California.
The Communists are EVERYWHERE, and California is a hotbed!
She faces up to 10 years in prison, and was first… pic.twitter.com/OtviumzrIT
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 11, 2026
Authorities say the pair operated a website called “U.S. News Center,” which presented itself as a local Chinese-American news outlet but allegedly functioned as a propaganda arm for Beijing. Prosecutors claim Wang and Sun received directives from Chinese officials instructing them to publish favorable content promoting the interests of the PRC.
One example cited in the plea agreement involved a 2021 WeChat group conversation in which a Chinese official distributed pre-written articles denying allegations of genocide and forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. Minutes later, Wang allegedly published the content on her website and sent the official a direct link to confirm it had been posted.
In another exchange, prosecutors say Wang edited an article at the request of a Chinese official before providing screenshots showing the article had received more than 15,000 views. According to court filings, the official praised the work by responding “Great!,” while Wang allegedly replied, “Thank you leader.”
The case also ties Wang to John Chen, described by prosecutors as a senior figure connected to the PRC intelligence apparatus who allegedly attended elite Chinese Communist Party functions and met personally with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
According to the Justice Department, Wang asked Chen in 2021 to distribute an article from her website and allegedly told him: “This is what the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants to send.”
Chen himself was sentenced in 2024 after pleading guilty in a separate federal case involving acting as an illegal Chinese agent and conspiring to bribe a public official.
The Justice Department said Wang admitted she never informed the U.S. Attorney General that she was acting on behalf of the Chinese government while operating in the United States, a disclosure required under federal law. Prosecutors also said she failed to disclose to readers that some content on her site had allegedly been posted at the direction of Chinese officials.
Wang was elected to the Arcadia City Council in 2022 and later became mayor through the council’s rotating leadership system. The FBI, which investigated the case, said the charges should serve as a warning to anyone working on behalf of foreign adversaries inside the United States.
“Individuals who act on behalf of foreign governments to influence our democracy will be identified, investigated, and brought to justice,” said FBI Counterintelligence official Roman Rozhavsky.
