UK trial of two alleged Hong Kong spies opens in London
Beijing-London ties in focus again, especially after Starmer's China trip failed to impress
Yuen Chung Biu, left, and Wai Chi Leung, at the Old Bailey, or Central Criminal Court, in London on Monday. The men are facing charges of spying for Hong Kong in the U.K. (Photos by Kris Cheng)
LONDON -- The trial of two men accused of spying for the Hong Kong government under Britain's National Security Act starts at the Old Bailey in London this week.
The defendants are Yuen Chung Biu, 65, and Wai Chi Leung, 40. Yuen is a retired Hong Kong police officer and previously an office manager at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in London. Wai, who also goes by Peter, was formerly a U.K. Border Force officer at Heathrow Airport and a part-time volunteer special constable with the City of London police.
Matthew Trickett, a former Royal Marine and a third defendant in the case, died aged 37 in May 2024 at a park in Maidenhead, England, near where he lived after he was granted bail. The death was not treated as suspicious, local authorities said.
The men's arrests in 2024 led to calls in London for the closure of the trade offices, which Hong Kong activists claimed were a front for state-sponsored espionage on the diaspora.
These offices have faced similar calls and accusations in the U.S., where there are four branches. In total, there are 15 HKETOs in the world. One of the most notable former London HKETO office managers is Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam.
Yuen and Wai were both charged in May 2024 with assisting a foreign intelligence service by agreeing to gather information, conduct surveillance and acts of deception against Hong Kong activists in the U.K.
They were also charged with foreign interference for breaking into a U.K. residential address. Additionally, Wai was charged with misconduct in a public office for searching Home Office databases without justification during his time as a U.K. Border Force Officer.
Presided by Judge Bobbie Cheema-Grubb, the trial at the Old Bailey, also known as the Central Criminal Court, was originally set for March 2025 but was delayed due in part to a high volume of evidence.
During jury selection on Monday, Cheema-Grubb said it will be an "interesting and important case." Jury selection continues on Tuesday, with hearings of the charges expected to start Wednesday and last around seven weeks.
Yuen and Wai were not required to speak in court on Monday and they did not respond to reporters' questions outside.
HKETO Deputy Director General Amy Wong Hoi-ling and Assistant Director General Stanley Woo Man-hong attended court on Monday.
After the 2024 arrests, the Chinese Embassy issued a statement rejecting the case, saying that China "strongly condemns the U.K.'s fabrication of the so-called case and its unwarranted accusation against the HKSAR government," referring to the Hong Kong special administrative region.
In September, a case against former parliamentary researcher Christopher Cash and academic Christopher Berry, who were accused of passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence, collapsed due to insufficient evidence obtained from the current Labour Party government.
That case hinged on the U.K., then under the Conservative Party's rule, designating that China was a threat to national security at the time of the alleged crimes, as required under the Official Secrets Act. The Labour government said the previous administration did not do so.
A much wider National Security Act came into force in 2023 under which Yuen and Wai have been charged.
The Labour government has been criticized for capitulating to China, given its moves to reset ties under Prime Minister Keir Starmer, including the approval of a controversial plan by Beijing to build a super embassy between London's financial hubs in the east end and Canary Wharf.
Following that greenlight, Starmer visited Beijing in January to meet President Xi Jinping. Starmer was the first British prime minister to make that trip in eight years, since Theresa May of the Conservative Party.
Kris Cheng is a contributing writer.
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