Sir Iain Duncan Smith was among the names of several UK politicians and pro-democracy supporters sent to a man accused of spying for Hong Kong, a court has heard.
Chung Biu Yuen, 64, was sent a message with a list of names, including Sir Iain, who is a vocal critic of China and the chair of the inter-parliamentary alliance on China, which assesses threats from Beijing.
The court heard the message, sent by former Hong Kong Police superintendent George Lee, "suggests Lee was tasking Yuen with intelligence gathering" relating to protest organisations in the UK.
Yuen is on trial with former UK Border Force officer Chi Leung Wai, of Staines-upon-Thames, also known as Peter Wai, 38, at the Old Bailey in London. The men, both dual Chinese and British citizens, are accused of assisting Hong Kong’s intelligence service between December 2023 and May 2024 by "agreeing to undertake information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception" in the UK. They both deny charges under the UK’s National Security Act. Wai, of Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey; and Yuen, of Hackney, east London, have denied the charges against them.
Opening the case on Wednesday, prosecutors alleged the men discussed paying “special attention” to MPs and councillors in the lead-up to China National Day events in 2021.
Wai was allegedly asked by a man called Eddie Ma, a former Hong Kong police officer, to "undertake investigations" in relation to a number of pro-democracy dissidents who had left the country, including Nathan Law.
Mr Ma told Wai he was interested in information related to Mr Law and former Hong Kong politician Chi Fung Hui, both of whom are now wanted in relation to national security charges in Hong Kong, the court heard on Wednesday.
Prosecutors said Mr Ma offered Wai a "monthly budget" of £4,500 to record details, including where they went, their addresses, their associates, and personal details with photographs.
The court heard Mr Ma also suggested Mr Ma told Wai he could use immigration-related systems he had access to as part of his role as a Border Force officer to obtain details of Hong Kong asylum seekers.
Opening the prosecution’s case, Duncan Atkinson KC said the pair’s actions coincided with public statements by the country’s authorities over “bounties” of up to HK $1m (£100,000) for information leading to the “whereabouts or capture” of those believed to have links to pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
Prosecutors allege Yuen, an employee of the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office (HKETO) in London, used his role to gather intelligence useful to the Hong Kong authorities”, including on those believed to be pro-democracy dissidents.
The court heard he also tasked Wai to undertake “various activities” to “benefit the interests” of China, as well as carrying out such activities himself.
Phone messages between Yuen and Wai indicated surveillance of pro-democracy protester Nathan Law, the court was told.
It was alleged in April 2023 that Wai and Yuen began to speak with a recruit called Matthew Trickett, a former Royal Marine who was then working as a Border Force officer. Trickett died in 2024.
Prosecutors alleged Trickett played a “key role” in the pair’s search for information, including through his own searches on Mr Law in the Home Office database.
In November 2023, Trickett asked to take part in a surveillance operation at the Oxford Union, where he intended to obtain photographs of Mr Law. The court heard Wai used ChatGPT to create a surveillance plan for the event.
The pair are also accused of foreign interference by “taking the law into their own hands” and forcing entry to an address of Monica Kwong, a former Hong Kong resident who had left in December 2023 and had been accused of fraud against her employer, Tina Zou.
The court heard the pair took steps to discover where Ms Kwong was living in Pontefract before using “underhand means, deception, and then force” to “achieve their ends”.
Mr Atkinson KC told the jury the defendants conducted surveillance on her address before tricking their way inside by posing as electricians coming to repair a fuse, and by pouring water under the front door to pretend there had been a flood in the building.
On 1 May 2024, the pair then decided to “force their way” into her home “as if they were a legitimate police operation” when they were apprehended by the UK police, the court heard.
Mr Atkinson said the pair had “misrepresented” themselves in an attempt to gain access to Ms Kwong’s flat. He added the actions had been taken “under the control of a foreign power, through the HKETO, under Mr Yuen’s direction”.
Wai started working for the UK Border Force in December 2020. The court heard that during his employment, he carried out a number of searches on a computer system called ATLAS, which contains records of immigration status and personal information, including names and contact details.
Prosecutors allege he searched for a “number” of names, including those of retired Hong Kong police officers, and of his co-defendant Yuen.
Wai was paid directly from the HKETO bank account, the court heard.
The defendants are jointly charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service between December 20 2023 and May 2 2024, and a second charge of foreign interference on May 1 2024 by forcing entry into a UK residential address. They deny all charges.
The trial, expected to last up to six weeks, continues.
