[ Today ] Singaporean Dickson Yeo, who spied for China in the US, tried to gather info on Singapore for foreign handlers: ISD
A 40-year-old Singaporean who was previously jailed in the United States for spying for China has been served with a detention order under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for acting as a paid agent of a foreign state.
He was arrested by ISD on Dec 30 last year upon his deportation from the United States, after he had served a 14-month jail sentence for acting within the US as an illegal agent of a foreign power without first notifying the Attorney General.
In its update on Tuesday, the agency said its investigations have established that Yeo was tasked to source information and provide reports on issues of interest to his foreign handlers, including information relating to Singapore.
Yeo had approached various individuals in Singapore to try to get information for the purpose of writing his reports, ISD added.
He had set up a front company here as a cover for his information-gathering activities as well as recruitment for his foreign handlers.
Yeo had even tried, but failed, to secure employment in the Singapore Government to further such activities, ISD said.
He had carried out these activities from 2016 until his arrest in the US in 2019.
Yeo has also since admitted to having worked for the intelligence apparatus of a foreign state and carrying out various tasks given to him by his foreign handlers in exchange for monetary gains, ISD said.
He admitted to being fully aware that his foreign handlers were working for the intelligence apparatus of the foreign state as well.
US court documents on Yeo stated that he had provided classified information to China by using his US-based political consultancy as a front for Chinese intelligence services between 2015 and 2019.