FBI Arrests 34-Year-Old California Realtor at LAX Over China Spy Allegations
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Oct 5
FBI Arrests 34-Year-Old California Realtor at LAX Over China Spy Allegations
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 5
Summary
Wanying “Heather” Zhang, 34, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport before boarding a flight to Shanghai, according to earlier court details tied to the case.
Federal authorities accuse the Irvine realtor of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for China and trying to leave the US after allegedly conducting surveillance.
The alleged target was Lai Ting-yu, son of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, during a 2025 trip to Seattle; investigators said the operation sought leverage over Taiwan’s leader.
FBI filings linked Zhang to China’s Ministry of State Security and cited WeChat messages with a suspected handler.
Taiwan’s presidential office has condemned the alleged operation as transnational repression, underscoring the wider US-China-Taiwan security tensions around the case.