Japanese man held in China for over a year on spying charges
- The unnamed person is one of nine Japanese nationals to have been jailed or detained in China on charges related to espionage since 2015
China has detained a Japanese man for over a year on espionage charges – the latest case of a foreign national who has run foul of the country’s secretive national security laws.
The unidentified man, who is in his forties, was detained in the southern city of Guangzhou in February last year, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said in Tokyo on Thursday.
Suga said the man was charged in June but had not yet been sentenced.
“From the standpoint of protecting overseas Japanese, we are working hard to provide as much support as possible,” Suga was quoted by Kyodo news agency as saying.
Kyodo also reported that the man was an employee of the Japanese trading firm Itochu. However, a representative of Itochu’s office in Beijing denied the report saying there was “no such case”.
A representative from the company’s Guangzhou office hung up when asked for comment.
Susumu Tsuda, senior coordinator of protection of Japanese nationals overseas for the Japanese foreign ministry, said the man was accused of violating Chinese espionage laws and was in custody. Japanese consular staff visited him every month.