FBI Nabs Alleged Chinese Agent at LAX After

A “Chinese foreign agent” was arrested by FBI brokers Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport as she ready to board a flight for Shanghai, China. According to a felony criticism filed by a member of the FBI’s counterintelligence squad on Saturday, Wanying “Heather” Zhang, 34, of Irvine, surveilled Ting-Yu Lai, the son of Taiwanese President Ching-Te Lai, at the direction of Chinese officers. Zhang is charged with performing as an unregistered agent of the People’s Republic of China.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli announced the arrest on X.

We just arrested a Chinese international agent at LAX trying to depart for China. Wanying Zhang, aka “Heather,” 34, of Irvine, was arrested today by @FBILosAngeles on a federal criticism charging her with performing 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 officers, surveilled a close relative of a Taiwanese authorities official, sending pictures, videos, and license plate info to those officers. She coordinated the journey with an affiliate and used tradecraft to keep away from detection. She never notified the Attorney General she was performing for a international authorities, a federal offense. She will seem in federal court in Los Angeles tomorrow for her initial look. Defendants are presumed harmless until confirmed guilty.

— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) October 4, 2026

He wrote:

We just arrested a Chinese international agent at LAX trying to depart for China. Wanying Zhang, aka “Heather,” 34, of Irvine, was arrested today by @FBILosAngeles on a federal criticism charging her with performing 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 officers, surveilled a close relative of a Taiwanese authorities official, sending pictures, videos, and license plate info to those officers.

She coordinated the journey with an affiliate and used tradecraft to keep away from detection. She never notified the Attorney General she was performing for a international authorities, a federal offense.

She will seem in federal court in Los Angeles tomorrow for her initial look. Defendants are presumed harmless until confirmed guilty.

Zhang and her husband, Edric Ding, are both Realtors with JC Pacific Capital in Irvine. A review of the firm’s web site reveals that it caters mainly to Chinese consumers, and all but one of the firm’s 187 brokers have Chinese names. The firm also gives mortgage, escrow, and property management providers.

CBS News obtained a copy of the felony criticism and the affidavit of FBI Special Agent Kevin Holt in assist of the criticism. The paperwork contained texts despatched to Zhang’s Chinese authorities handler utilizing the Chinese messaging app WeChat and have been saved on her iCloud account.

The criticism claims Zhang was launched in June 2025 to one of the Chinese authorities officers by a classmate from her alma mater, Beijing’s University of International Relations, which Holt said has close ties to the Ministry of State Security.

Holt’s affidavit claims  Zhang booked a personal room in Changsha, China, during a June 2025 journey, where she allegedly met the federal government official and acquired her surveillance mission.

She later texted the official, “I can take care of this thing,” according to the criticism.

On Aug. 26, 2025, Zhang wrote: “I will be busy with work in L.A. this week. I will probably go to Seattle next week,” and the official replied: “Ok. Thank you for your hard work,” the criticism said.

According to the criticism, Zhang met with a Chinese authorities official during a June 2025 journey to Changsha, China and “received her surveillance mission.” She later texted that official to say, “I can handle this thing,” and flew from Las Vegas to Seattle on September 1, 2025 along with a man only named in the criticism as “Individual 1” then rented a car and drove to Ting-Yu’s suburban home. She video recorded Ting-Yu and his spouse arriving at the home with their younger little one, and despatched pictures, video, and two license plate numbers to her handler.

Zhang’s husband was not with her at LAX; when CBS News reached him at home Sunday he said, “I don’t know anything yet” and declined to remark additional.

Zhang’s first look is scheduled in federal court in Los Angeles on Monday.

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