NBI Nabs Chinese, 2 Pinoys for Espionage

A suspected Chinese "sleeper agent" and his two Filipino cohorts, who have reportedly been going to vital military installations around the country, have been arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for allegedly engaging in espionage activities.

- By Evelyn Macairan and Mark Ernest Villeza

At a joint press conference at the Department of Justice, the NBI filed a complaint of espionage under Section 1(A) and 2(A) of Commonwealth Act 616 in relation to Republic Act 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, against Yuanqing Deng and his drivers Ronel Jojo Balundo Besa and Jayson Amado Fernandez.

Espionage is a non-bailable offense. The NBI apprehended Deng outside a condominium unit in Makati City at around 7 p.m. last Friday after he reportedly failed to present a permit, license, or any authority for unlawfully obtaining information affecting national defense.

Deng is a graduate of the PLA University Science and Technology, which is controlled and operated by the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the military arm of the Chinese Communist Party and the People's Republic of China.

He is reportedly a specialist of control engineering and their automation and engineering discipline.

“I think he has been in the country for five years or more already… And we believe that he can be dubbed as a ‘sleeper’ because through our monitoring, he was acting just like an ordinary person,” NBI Cybercrime Division and Special Task Force chief Jeremy Lotoc said.