Texas woman held in China since 2015 to face security charges –Newsweek
US State Department official quoted as saying Sandy Phan-Gillis will be charged with violating national security
A US businesswoman held in China since March last year is expected to be charged with violating the country’s national security, Newsweek reported on Thursday, citing a US State Department official.
Sandy Phan-Gillis of Houston, who has Chinese ancestry and is a naturalized US citizen, was arrested in March 2015 while about to leave China for Macau and has been held without charges since then.
“Chinese authorities have informed us that they will bring a case against Ms Phan-Gillis to the Nanning Intermediate People’s Court,” Newsweek quoted the State Department official as saying. It said the official had no information on the charges or date.
“We urge China to resolve this case expeditiously and to ensure that Ms Phan-Gillis continues to have full access to an attorney,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the case’s sensitivity, Newsweek said.
A Washington spokeswoman for the State Department said it was looking into the report.