China Spy Dickson Yeo Sentenced to 14 Months’ Jail in the US; Claimed to Still Support China

You might have forgotten about Dickson Yeo, given the many things that happened over the past few weeks.

So let me refresh your memory by giving you three keywords:

• Spying on the US
• Singaporean
• For China
• Algorithm

Reader Bao: You’re not making sense. There are four key phrases.

Okay, fine.

Last we heard about Yeo, he was in US custody, Singapore is providing the necessary assistance to him and his school (NUS) has disavowed him.

That was back in July 2020.

Well, it’s now Oct 2020 and there’s now an update on his case.

China Spy Dickson Yeo Sentenced to 14 Months’ Jail in the US

On 9 Oct 2020, Yeo was sentenced to 14 months’ jail in the US at his court hearing.

The prosecution had asked for 16 months’ jail in light of his cooperation with the investigation but his defense lawyer asked for a “time of jail served”.

His lawyer pointed out that Yeo is deeply “remorseful” about his actions and regrets getting caught up “in the swirl of satisfying Chinese Intelligence and compromising his own integrity”.

When he was approached by Chinese agents, he was “lonely” and struggling in his academics, making him “vulnerable” to individuals with malicious intent.

They (Chinese Intelligence) gave him more credit and recognition than what he was getting from academia at that time.

A time of jail served basically means that whatever time he’s served in jail while going through the investigation and court processes is considered as the punishment (jail term).

In the case of Yeo, he’s been in jail since Nov 2019; so adding the time needed to deport him back to Singapore, it would’ve come out to about 13 months, according to ST.

District Judge Tanya Chutkan eventually sentenced him to 14 months’ jail, with his 11-month stay in jail credited into the jail term.

A Sign of Remorse

The fact that Yeo had agreed to speaking to FBI agents instead of boarding a plane out of the country when he didn’t have to do so shows how deeply he regrets his actions, she said.

According to court documents, Yeo was questioned by border agents when entering the US on 6 Nov.

While he did explain that his work lies on the border of “corporate espionage”, he did not reveal his relationship with the Chinese government.

The next day, he booked a flight out of the country and was approached by FBI agents for a voluntary interview.

He declined and walked away and no one could stop him.

However, he changed his mind shortly after a while on the plane and disembarked, returning to the agents.

During his interview, he confessed his actions and was arrested on 8 Nov 2019.

Fair Trial With Full Rights Given

During the trial, the judge emphasised that Yeo wasn’t being punished for his political views or thoughts.

It was added that Yeo was treated in the best possible way under the US Justice system and was given access to his full rights, including getting a defense lawyer.

On his part, Yeo validated the claims by thanking the US government for their professionalism when it comes to handling his case.

Claimed to Still Support China

Yeo added, during his hearing, that he is “still sympathetic to the Chinese cause”, and that in China, there is an impression that the US is out to “bleed China dry”.

Nonetheless, it was never his intention to harm anyone and he only wants to return home to his family now, he said.

He also took full responsibility for his actions, which includes setting up a front company and obtaining sensitive information about the US government with the help of algorithms.

To find out more about what happened, you might want to check out this article here.