FBI Captures Alleged Chinese Spy Who Was Attempting to Flee U.S.
A suspect Chinese spy, Wanying Zhang (“Heather”) of Irvine, was arrested at LAX while attempting to leave for China. She is accused of acting as an unregistered agent of China, surveilling a relative of a Taiwanese official, and relaying sensitive information to chinese officials. Zhang allegedly traveled to Seattle at PRC officials’ behest, gathered intel on a Taiwanese official’s family, and coordinated covert activities using tradecraft. She targeted Ting-Yu Lai, the son of Taiwan’s President, and was caught on camera attempting to film him and his family. Zhang communicated with her Chinese government handler and sought confirmation of her activities via text messages. She faces federal court appearances in California, with authorities indicating her actions aimed to provide leverage for China over Taiwan during potential conflicts.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation apprehended a suspected Chinese spy on Sunday who was attempting to get on a plane at LAX so that she could return to her homeland.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California posted about the case on social media and included a short video clip of the suspect being led away in handcuffs.
“We just arrested a Chinese foreign agent at LAX attempting to depart for China. Wanying Zhang, aka ‘Heather,’ 34, of Irvine, was arrested today,” he wrote on X, noting that a federal complaint is “charging her with acting as an unregistered agent of the People’s Republic of China.”
“According to the affidavit, Zhang traveled to Seattle in 2025 and, at the direction of PRC officials, surveilled a close relative of a Taiwanese government official, sending photos, videos, and license plate information to those officials,” Essayli described, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
“She coordinated the trip with an associate and used tradecraft to avoid detection.”
He added that “she never notified the Attorney General she was acting for a foreign government, a federal offense.”
We just arrested a Chinese foreign agent at LAX attempting to depart for China.
Wanying Zhang, aka “Heather,” 34, of Irvine, was arrested today by @FBILosAngeles on a federal complaint charging her with acting as an unregistered agent of the People’s Republic of China.
According to the affidavit, Zhang traveled to Seattle in 2025 and, at the direction of PRC officials, surveilled a close relative of a Taiwanese government official, sending photos, videos, and license plate information to those officials.
She coordinated the trip with an associate and used tradecraft to avoid detection. She never notified the Attorney General she was acting for a foreign government, a federal offense.
She will appear in federal court in Los Angeles tomorrow for her initial appearance. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) October 4, 2026
Law enforcement sources told CBS News that she was targeting Ting-Yu Lai, who is the son of Taiwanese President Ching-Te Lai.
Ting-Yu is in his 30s and works as an engineer. He attended school in the United States and has a young son with his wife.
FBI Special Agent Kevin Holt wrote in a Saturday criminal complaint, “If the PRC wish to obtain leverage over the President of Taiwan during any potential conflict, the location and pictures of the close relatives of a high-ranking Taiwanese government official, including pictures of their homes and cars, could be useful to the PRC.”
The complaint also stated that Zhang joined a man identified as “Individual 1” on a trip from Las Vegas to Seattle in September 2025 before renting a car and driving it to Ting-Yu’s house.
They were later caught on a security camera attempting to film Ting-Yu and his family.
Zhang is also accused of reaching out to her Chinese government handler to confirm she was gathering information, after the U.S. government obtained a search warrant for her iCloud account.
She texted the words, “Saw him. Young male. It’s that young one,” and “I am videorecording,” along with two license plate numbers.
The criminal complaint alleged that Zhang “was in contact with at least two people whom she appeared to acknowledge worked for the PRC government.”
Additionally, the complaint outlined how Zhang was introduced to government officials only a few months before she filmed Ting-Yu.
Zhang is set to appear in federal court in Los Angeles on Monday.
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