Spy suspect ‘did not want to leave fortune cookie as calling card'

Times

2 days ago

A British businessman accused of spying for China told an FBI informant not to leave a fortune cookie as a calling card at the scene of a planned assault on a Chinese-American dissident, according to court documents.
John Miller, 63, was arrested in April while on a business trip in Belgrade, Serbia, on the orders of the FBI after a sting operation in which he was allegedly caught spying for China and trying to buy military hardware in the US for the People's Liberation Army.
Court documents allege that Miller was caught referring to President Xi as 'the boss' in intercepted phone calls, showing he was acting under the 'direction' of Beijing.
Miller, who is from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, as well as being a permanent resident of the US, is also alleged to have organised the surveillance and harassment of a Chinese-American artist who was critical of the Chinese regime, telling a henchman to make him an 'offer he can't refuse … like the Godfather'.
In one phone call with an FBI informant in October 2023, Miller allegedly suggested attacking the artist and leaving him unable to walk. The artist had created an 'embarrassing' sculpture showing Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, kneeling on sand, naked from the waist up.
'It's the message they give. You know? We're gonna make sure you're not f***ing walking. We're gonna put you in a wheelchair for three f***ing months or something. That's what I'll say. That's it. It's their signature,' he said, according to court documents. Later in the call, he is said to have told the informant: 'The message has to be you ain't walking for a little while motherf***er. Not giving him brain damage. Just lower body damage.'
In response, the informant allegedly suggested they 'leave a fortune cookie so they know it was a China man', to which Miller said: 'Oh no they don't want any connection to a China man.'
According to the court documents, the informant responded: 'Oh. Leave leave a pork rind.' Miller allegedly replied: 'Yeah, yeah, yeah, make it look like a mugging … And there'd be another message coming.'
When asked what the other message was Miller allegedly said that the ­artist's family could be targeted next. He is claimed to have agreed with the informant that the planned assault was 'absolutely f***ing overkiller' but that it was all about 'what the big fella wants'.
Miller was arrested on April 24 in Serbia, where he is being held after being accused of conspiring with a US-based Chinese citizen called Cui Guanghai, 43.
The businessman has been charged in the US with interstate stalking, conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, smuggling and violations of the Arms Export Control Act.
Miller is accused of conspiring with Cui Guanghai. Both could face up to 40 years in prison if they are convicted
If convicted, both Miller and Guanghai, who held a position in the Chinese government, according to documents filed at the Eastern District Court of Wisconsin, face up to 40 years in prison.
A 14-page Wisconsin indictment ­alleges that Miller, a recruitment specialist, was caught in a sting after arms dealers he was negotiating with turned out to be undercover FBI agents.
He is accused of attempting to procure equipment including surface-to-air missiles, predator drones and a handheld device for the secure communication of 'classified and sensitive national security information'.
A second 67-page indictment, filed in California, accuses Miller and Guanghai, known as 'Jack', of mounting the operation against the artist. Transcripts between Miller and an associate allege they discussed assaulting the artist, ­either by shooting him or hitting him with a baseball bat.
Miller is also alleged to have orchestrated a scheme in which the FBI informant hired actors to stage a pro-China protest against a visit by the president of Taiwan to the US.
On Sunday neighbours of Miller's £1.5 million, five-bedroom home ­described him as a respectable family man who often went to the Far East for business.
According to Companies House records, Miller has been a director or a majority shareholder of at least nine firms, including the now-dissolved TEFL Jobs China Ltd.
The Foreign Office said: 'We are providing consular assistance to a British national following his arrest in Serbia in April and are in touch with the local authorities and his family.'