Cai Xiaohong has been accused of betraying state secrets
A former senior official with the Beijing Liaison Office in Hong Kong is being detained and interviewed on the mainland for spying, a semi-official news agency reported yesterday.
An official from the liaison office in Hong Kong was quoted by the Hong Kong China News Agency as saying that Cai Xiaohong, the former secretary-general of the office, was under investigation by the mainland's judicial organ for alleged offences, including betrayal of state secrets.
Two Chinese-language newspapers, the Oriental Daily News and the Sun, reported yesterday that Cai was detained by the national security forces in Beijing between July and August.
The news agency said Cai's was just one of a string of cases of foreign intelligence agencies' espionage activities in Hong Kong.
'According to the espionage cases cracked by relevant mainland departments over the past few years, foreign intelligence agencies have been using Hong Kong as a base to launch espionage activities, such as recruiting spies, inciting defections and stealing secrets,' the report said.
According to the report, Cai was allegedly betraying state secrets to western intelligence agencies after receiving bribes of up to $6 million.