A California woman who prosecutors allege was spying on a son of Taiwan’s president was indicted earlier this month on charges of conspiracy and being an unregistered foreign agent for China.The indictment was filed Oct.9 in U.S.
District Court for the Central District of California, and the allegations it lays out mirror an earlier criminal complaint against Wanying Zhang, 34, of Irvine, California.Prosecutors say Zhang, who also goes by Heather, spied on a son of Taiwan’s president outside his home in the Seattle area at the behest of Chinese officials.
The alleged spying took place between roughly June and September 2025, prosecutors claim.Taiwan is a self-ruled democracy that is the source of 90% of the world’s “leading-edge chip manufacturing,” according to the U.S.International Trade Administration.
China claims Taiwan, and the United States has recognized this for nearly half a century, though the U.S.is required by law to ensure Taiwan can defend itself.Prosecutors allege Zhang was under the direction of an unnamed Chinese government official and former classmate at her alma mater, China’s University of International Relations, which is “closely affiliated with China’s intelligence apparatus,” an FBI investigator said in earlier court documents.An example of her alleged activity includes a request by the former classmate to send him pictures “of the house” where the son lives, according to the indictment.Prosecutors alleged she flew from California to Las Vegas and then to the Seattle area to surveil the unidentified son and his home from outside.The indictment alleges she captured photos, video and license plate information and sent them to her alleged Chinese handler.
An unidentified person, who had fled to China in September, was with her, prosecutors said.Zhang also traveled to China in August 2025 to meet with a Chinese government official, before returning days later and telling the official she’d likely be going to where th...