Suspected Chinese Spy Fang Fang Solicited Illegal Donations for Swalwell

Declassified FBI documents reveal that a three-year federal investigation into California Democrat Eric Swalwell uncovered evidence that suspected Chinese intelligence operative Fang Fang orchestrated illegal campaign donations, though the probe was ultimately shelved due to national security concerns, according to Josh Christenson writing in New York Post.

The undercover operation, running from May 2014 to May 2017, was launched after the FBI received intelligence that internship positions in Swalwell’s congressional offices were being exchanged for campaign contributions. Bureau files declassified by the White House Monday show investigators discovered a broader scheme involving foreign nationals and straw donors designed to conceal the true source of political contributions.

An FBI memorandum dated June 10, 2014, outlined the suspected arrangement in which campaign contributions were funneled through third parties to hide donor identities, with some payments coming from foreign nationals in direct violation of federal criminal statutes.

Federal agents conducted extensive interviews with Swalwell, campaign donors, and members of his political circle but could not prove the alleged quid pro quo arrangement. The investigation did, however, compile evidence showing that Fang—who also used the name Christine Fang—engaged in soliciting illegal straw donations from foreign nationals, destroyed records, made false statements to authorities, smuggled cash, and operated as an unregistered foreign agent for China.

A May 2, 2017, FBI memo confirmed that Fang departed the United States and was subsequently barred from re-entering the country following Security and Advisory Opinions issued by the State Department. Prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California determined that pursuing criminal charges was not viable due to national security reasons.

Operation Freshman Fifteen Fails to Secure Indictments

The FBI codenamed its undercover probe “Freshman Fifteen” with the goal of gathering sufficient evidence to charge both Swalwell and Fang with campaign finance violations. Despite the operation’s scope, neither individual faced criminal prosecution.

Interview subjects told federal investigators they suspected Fang was operating as a spy for the Chinese Communist Party. She rarely attended classes or completed coursework at California State University, East Bay, despite holding an F-1 student visa. Her parents were identified as known intelligence officers within China’s Ministry of State Security, an agency Swalwell himself jokingly referred to as the Chinese CIA during his FBI interview.

One witness described Fang as extremely private and frequently absent without explanation, though she also engaged in behavior considered obvious and unsophisticated for covert intelligence work.

Physical Relationship Confirmed

Now 45 years old, Swalwell acknowledged to investigators that he engaged in a physical relationship with Fang on at least two occasions at his apartment. He admitted that during one encounter, she arrived at his residence after he had taken Ambien to help him sleep, and he said he barely remembered what occurred.

A former campaign aide confirmed to FBI agents that Fang behaved in a flirtatious manner and once boasted to the congressman that she was not wearing underwear when she arrived unannounced at his door for one of their meetings.

Swalwell maintained that he viewed Fang as his primary liaison with the local chapter of the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Associations and assumed that anyone she recommended for employment came through that organization. He told agents that a substantial portion of his Bay Area constituents were Chinese American and emphasized the importance of diversity when explaining Fang’s frequent visits to his office.

McCarthy Removed Swalwell from Intelligence Committee

The congressman’s connection to Fang, first publicly reported by Axios in December 2020, prompted then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to remove Swalwell from the House Intelligence Committee in January 2023, citing national security risks posed by the relationship.

During interviews, Swalwell denied knowledge of any scheme involving Fang that would have directed illegal campaign funds through intermediaries. In early 2015, as part of the undercover operation, Fang was introduced to an FBI employee posing as someone interested in hosting a fundraiser for Swalwell and making campaign donations in exchange for an internship. The donation used as bait in the operation had been approved by the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section, which at the time was overseen by Jack Smith, who would later serve as special counsel.

The investigation ultimately concluded without charges against either party.

With information from New York Post