Recently declassified confidential FBI files show that former California Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell admitted to the FBI that he had multiple intimate encounters with Christine Fang （also known as Fang Fang), who was suspected of being a Chinese Communist Party intelligence operative. The files also reveal for the first time that Fang Fang said she had served for seven years as a flight attendant aboard the special aircraft used by former CCP leader Hu Jintao. After the FBI uncovered Fang Fang’s ties to Chinese intelligence agencies, it reportedly attempted to recruit her as a double agent.
The newly declassified FBI documents reveal that Swalwell acknowledged having had intimate relations on multiple occasions with Fang Fang, whom U.S. authorities suspected of being a CCP spy. Swalwell resigned in April of this year after being accused of sexual assault by a former staff member. For years, his relationship with Fang Fang had drawn public scrutiny. Swalwell repeatedly refused to say whether the two had a sexual or romantic relationship, dismissing the allegations as a Republican political attack.
According to the declassified FBI files, on one occasion Fang Fang showed up uninvited at the door of his apartment, after which the two had sex. Swalwell also said that their sexual relationship began before he was elected to Congress and that the last time they had sex was in March 2015.
The FBI also concluded that Fang Fang was suspected of concealing the identities of foreign nationals through intermediaries in order to make illegal contributions to Swalwell’s campaign. She also recommended interns for positions on Swalwell’s political team.
The documents further show that Fang Fang had served as a flight attendant on special aircraft during the Hu Jintao era. The FBI had long suspected that she had ties to China’s Ministry of State Security and even believed that her parents were known CCP intelligence operatives. The FBI therefore attempted to recruit her, assigning her the code name “Rusty Thumb.”
The memorandum also states that Fang Fang returned to China after being searched by the FBI and was subsequently barred by the U.S. State Department from reentering the United States. The U.S. Department of Justice ultimately did not bring charges against her.
A government official said questions have been raised about why the FBI did not detain Fang Fang after questioning and searching her, allowing her to leave the country. Investigators are also examining whether she may have gained access to other federal or state political institutions through interns or other channels.
Comments