Overview
- Eileen Wang agreed Monday to plead guilty after a previously sealed deal was made public, resigned her Arcadia post, appeared in federal court, and was released on a $25,000 bond while facing up to 10 years in prison.
- Prosecutors say that from late 2020 to 2022 she and Yaoning “Mike” Sun ran a site called U.S. News Center and posted content at the direction of Chinese officials without the notice required by 18 U.S.C. §951.
- In a June 2021 example cited in court records, a Chinese official sent prewritten material on Xinjiang over WeChat, Wang posted it within minutes, and the official replied, “So fast, thank you everyone.”
- Her case ties into related convictions that prosecutors describe as a coordinated influence effort, with Sun serving a four-year sentence and John Chen sentenced in 2024 after pleading guilty in a separate case.
- Arcadia officials said the conduct ended before Wang took office in December 2022 and involved no city funds or staff, and the City Council will select a new mayor at its next meeting.