A former U.S. Central Intelligence Agency officer will appear in a Honolulu court Tuesday where he will face charges of conspiracy to disclose national defense information to aid a foreign country.
It is alleged Alexander Yuk Ching Ma shared sensitive information with China as part of an espionage that ran for more than 10 years, the U.S. Justice Department said.
Authorities arrested Ma last week following an undercover operation in which prosecutors claim Ma was paid $2,000 in exchange for his past spying activities. Court records said Ma accepted gifts in addition to cash.
Records unsealed Monday said Ma worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a linguist and worked with an unidentified relative, also a former CIA officer, to sell classified trade and national defense secrets in return for tens of thousands of dollars.
The Justice Department said if found guilty 67-year old Ma could be sentenced to life in prison. Spying is one of many "unlawful schemes that China is conducting within and against the U.S," FBI Counterintelligence Division assistant director Alan Kohler Jr. said.
Prosecutors said Ma was born in Hong Kong and moved to Hawaii in 1968 where he attended university. He is a naturalized U.S. citizen and served as a CIA officer until he retired in 1989. He joined the agency in 1967 and was assigned to work in the Pacific region and eastern parts of Asia.
An affidavit issued by the FBI shows Ma is accused of providing information to five Chinese intelligence officers in Hong Kong over a three-day period starting March 2001. Authorities said video of the meeting showed Ma and his relative being paid $50,000 for the CIA secrets.
The relative is said to be an 85-year-old naturalized citizen and Los Angeles resident and has been identified as Co-conspirator 1. The FBI said the relative isn't facing charges because he suffers from a severe illness.
