US journalist pleads guilty to acting as Chinese agent

Thomas Weir Pauken II, a 50-year-old American journalist who lived in China for more than a decade, pleaded guilty in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, to acting in the United States as an illegal agent of China. Prosecutors said Pauken worked from at least 2019 to February 2026 under the direction of people tied to the People's Republic of China, gathering information on U.S. targets and trying to build contacts in American political circles. Court filings say he received more than $100,000 and made repeated trips from China to the United States. Investigators also said he provided information about the Justice Department and U.S. technology to contacts in Wuhan and helped seek expertise for cyber operations.