Former assistant to German federal parliament member Maximilian Krah, Jian G, has been sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison by a German court for collecting information on dissidents for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This case highlights the extensive infiltration of the CCP into German and European politics, military, and economy, as well as the monitoring of dissenting individuals overseas.
Jian G started working for the CCP’s intelligence department in 2022. During his time as an assistant to European Parliament member Maximilian Krah of the Alternative for Germany party, he used his position to gather internal information of the European Parliament and the party. Additionally, he was accused of covertly monitoring Chinese dissidents in Germany.
A Chinese woman, identified as Yaqi X, who was alleged to have collaborated with Jian G, was sentenced to 1 year and 9 months of probation. She confessed to providing Jian G with airport flight and cargo information, especially related to military equipment transportation, utilizing her job at a logistics company in Germany.
Krah is currently a member of the German parliament. He is under investigation for suspected involvement in money laundering and receiving bribes from the CCP during his time as a European Parliament member. According to reports citing investigation files by Der Spiegel, Krah received over 50,000 euros (approximately $58,700) from multiple companies closely associated with Jian G between 2019 and 2022.
The trial of this high-profile CCP espionage case, held at the Dresden Higher Regional Court in Germany, revealed extensive details during its initial hearing on August 5th. The 14-page indictment exposed the CCP’s widespread infiltration into German and European politics, military, and economy, as well as the monitoring of dissenting individuals overseas.
According to the indictment by the Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Germany, Jian G’s tasks as a CCP intelligence operative included:
– Collecting and storing over 500 European Parliament documents, with at least 11 marked as “Sensitive,” related to the Parliament’s negotiations and decision-making processes.
– Gathering personal information of Alternative for Germany (AfD) leaders such as party chairman Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla. Jian G compiled multiple Chinese documents recording conversations with Krah, including details of AfD party operations and leaders’ private lives.
– Pretending to be a critic of the Chinese government, Jian G infiltrated multiple Telegram groups of Chinese dissidents in Germany to collect their personal information. He stored two Excel spreadsheets containing a total of 1,001 rows and 24,171 rows of information, including personal account details of Chinese dissidents on social networks. The longer list also included more detailed personal information such as ID numbers, addresses, phone numbers, and personal resumes of listed individuals, with 21 confirmed to be residing in Germany.
Jian G’s alleged accomplice, Yaqi X, served as a customer service manager at PortGround GmbH at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Between August 2023 and February 2024, Yaqi X provided Jian G with substantial airport transportation information, including military aircraft, cargo, and passenger data.
This case not only exposes the CCP’s attempts to infiltrate Germany and the European Union but also underscores vulnerabilities in Germany’s security apparatus. The incident serves as a reminder for Germany to reflect on its resilience in the face of espionage attempts and how to prevent politicians from being exploited by hostile foreign forces.
(This article references reports from Reuters and AFP)