Prague City Court in the Czech Republic began hearing on Wednesday (October 14) the case of Yang Yiming, a journalist of the “Bright Daily” stationed in Prague, accused of “engaging in activities for foreign forces without authorization.” This is the first time that a case has been tried in the Czech judicial system under this charge, and it is the first criminal prosecution in the Czech Republic against a foreign national suspected of working for a foreign intelligence agency, rather than just being expelled.
Under tight security, Yang Yiming was escorted to Prague City Court wearing a balaclava that covered most of his face, accompanied by armed escort personnel. Outside the court, a group of journalists gathered, hoping to be allowed in to observe the proceedings.
The case is presided over by Judge Tom Frankič. Prague City Court stated that Yang Yiming denied the charges through his lawyer and refused to acknowledge the contents of the indictment.
Czech state prosecutor Martin Bílý accused 32-year-old Yang Yiming of entering Czech Republic as a journalist for the “Bright Daily” since 2022, holding a foreign journalist card issued by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, in reality, he allegedly acted under the guise of a journalist, following instructions from the Chinese Communist intelligence agency to collect political and economic information in Czech Republic and Slovakia, create an influence network, and pass on the obtained data to others.
According to the indictment, Yang Yiming is accused of targeting Czech political and academic figures, including those with a friendlier stance towards Taiwan such as Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil and former Chamber of Deputies Speaker Markéta Pekarová Adamová, attempting to gather unfavorable information about them.
The prosecution claimed that Yang Yiming had invited several political figures for dinners, gifted them presents, and invited some to visit China. He also created at least 38 documents on his personal computer, stored in multiple devices, containing investigations, analyses, risk assessments, recommendations conducted by himself, to be sent to a designated location at a specified time.
In the indictment, it was pointed out that collecting and transferring such information to China could threaten Czech sovereignty and basic constitutional order. The prosecutor emphasized that there is a fundamental difference between general journalistic work and intelligence activities.
Yang Yiming’s defense lawyer Michal Sýkora stated that his client believes he is innocent and does not agree with the content of the indictment. The defense denied that Yang Yiming is a member of a “foreign intelligence agency” and argued that his intention was only to collect information without posing a concrete and real threat to Czech Republic.
The defense argued that collecting information was part of Yang Yiming’s journalistic work. The prosecution countered that due to the involvement of classified information in the case, details such as Yang Yiming being a member of a “foreign intelligence agency” should not be disclosed.
Furthermore, the defense requested that the court prohibit public attendance for the ongoing proceedings. The prosecution opposed this request. Eventually, the court decided that public attendance will not be allowed during the questioning of the defendant and the reading of certain documents, with the rest of the trial proceedings expected to be conducted publicly.
Yang Yiming uttered only one sentence in court that day: “Please let my lawyer speak on my behalf.”
The trial of this case is scheduled to continue until Friday. After a brief adjournment on Wednesday, apart from the lawyers and judges, there were two women present in the courtroom, reportedly attending as relatives or acquaintances of the defendant, but they were identified as coming from the Chinese Embassy in the Czech Republic.
This case originated from a joint investigation by the Czech National Counterterrorism, Anti-Extremism, and Anti-Cybercrime Center and the Security Information Service (BIS). Yang Yiming was arrested in Prague on January 17, 2026, and the Prague District VIII Court subsequently ordered his detention citing a risk of flight.
The prosecution mentioned that Yang Yiming had met with several Czech and Slovak political figures, and had applied for news coverage permits and residency permits multiple times. The indictment also stated that the first political figure he interviewed was current “Motorists” foreign policy expert and former European Parliament member Jan Zahradil, who had reportedly drafted international situation analysis reports at his request. It was reported that in the summer of 2024, after the Czech security department informally warned Yang Yiming as a high-risk individual, Zahradil severed ties with him.
The prosecution also alleged that Yang Yiming had been very active in Slovakia, directly engaging with pro-Russian European Parliament members and conveying messages of “abandoning values and embracing China and Russia.”
The crime of “engaging in activities for foreign forces without authorization” with which Yang Yiming is charged became effective in February 2025, applicable to actions that involve working for a foreign country or organization with the intent to threaten or harm the constitutional order, sovereignty, territorial integrity, defense, or security of Czech Republic. If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison.
Michal Koudelka, head of the Czech Security Information Service, stated in an interview with local media that only a few countries globally, such as the United States and the United Kingdom, are willing to publicly disclose and prosecute such espionage cases.
He remarked, “We have now joined this elite club. Czech Republic has made it clear to Beijing what Russia had long understood: they cannot do as they please with us.”
Koudelka also mentioned that detaining this suspected spy carries particular symbolic warning significance for Beijing.