• Two Hong Kong nationals sentenced for spying on pro-democracy activists in the UK.
• Peter Wai receives a ten-year sentence; Bill Yuen is sentenced to eight years.
• The case highlights tensions between the UK and China regarding national security.

Two dual Chinese-British nationals linked to the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office were sentenced on Thursday for spying on activists residing in the UK. Bill Yuen Chung-biu, 65, received an eight-year prison term, while co-defendant Peter Wai Chi-leung, 40, was sentenced to ten years for similar charges. Their actions were described by Judge Bobbie Cheema-Grubb as “deliberate, concerted, and serious,” causing significant fear among their victims, according to India Times and Los Angeles Times.

The court proceedings revealed that Yuen, a former police superintendent, facilitated intelligence gathering on specific activists and politicians, including Nathan Law, a prominent pro-democracy figure in Hong Kong. Wai, who had previously served as a UK Border Force officer, was found guilty of misconduct for accessing sensitive information from government databases regarding individuals targeted by Hong Kong authorities. This information-gathering operation was termed “shadow policing” by prosecutors, highlighting a serious breach of national security as the duo collected information on behalf of foreign interests, according to South China Morning Post and Los Angeles Times.

Both men were arrested two years prior and were remanded in custody after being found guilty in May. During the trial, it was revealed that the two would often use surveillance techniques and even posed as intelligence officers to gather information on their targets, which included local activists with ties to pro-democracy movements in Hong Kong. The case has significant implications for UK-China relations, especially as tensions have heightened over the impact of the Hong Kong National Security Law, according to India Times and South China Morning Post.