Man convicted of stalking Chinese ex-official by leaving him a dire note gets prison in US

A man who taped a sinister note to a Chinese ex-official’s door in New Jersey was sentenced yesterday [Macau time] to 16 months in prison. He was convicted of participating in what U.S. authorities called a Beijing-driven pressure campaign targeting expatriates.

Zheng Congying was one of three men convicted at the first trial highlighting U.S. claims that China’s government harasses and intimidates dissidents and critics on foreign soil. Beijing denies doing so and says its “Operation Fox Hunt” is an effort to bring fugitives home to face justice.

A federal court jury in Brooklyn found Zheng and co-defendants Michael McMahon and Zhu Yong guilty of playing various roles in seeking out Xu Jin, a former official in the Chinese city of Wuhan, and pressing him to return to his homeland. There, he would face bribery allegations that he denies.

Zheng knocked on Xu’s New Jersey door, circled the home to peer inside and left a note that read, in translation: “If you are willing to go back to the mainland and spend 10 years in prison, your wife and children will be all right. That’s the end of this matter!”

Zheng’s lawyer, Paul Goldberger, said during the trial that Zheng later regretted what he’d done and tried to retrieve the letter. Prosecutors suggested he went back to the house just to see whether the note had been received.

The defendants didn’t testify, but their lawyers said the three believed they were aiding a private company or individuals, not the Chinese government.

Zheng, a Chinese citizen, was convicted of stalking and stalking conspiracy but acquitted of other charges. A message seeking comment on his sentencing was sent to his lawyer.

Zhu was sentenced last week to two years in prison. McMahon, a retired U.S. police sergeant, is due to be sentenced later this winter.

Three other people pleaded guilty in the case. Five others also were charged, but they’re believed to be in China and haven’t come to the U.S. to appear in court. MDT/AP