A former Department of Homeland Security agent and private investigator from Irvine is facing criminal charges as part of a widening federal probe of an alleged international effort to target Chinese dissidents living in the United States.
Derrick Taylor — along with current DHS agent Craig Miller — are accused of lying to federal investigators and destroying evidence tied to what federal prosecutors describe as a “transnational repression scheme” against those critical of the Chinese government, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Three other men — Fan “Frank” Liu, Matthew Ziburis and Qiang “Jason” Sun — were previously charged with carrying out the alleged effort to silence critics of the Chinese government, including those advocating for democracy in the People’s Republic of China.
Federal prosecutors say the alleged scheme was “orchestrated on behalf of the government of the People’s Republic of China.”
Among other allegations, federal prosecutors say Liu, Ziburis and Sun plotted to destroy artwork created by a Chinese national living in Los Angeles that was critical of the Chinese government. The men are accused of also planting surveillance equipment in the artist’s workplace and car in order to spy on him.
Prosecutors allege that Taylor and Miller accessed “sensitive and confidential information” on U.S.-based Chinese dissidents from a restricted federal law-enforcement database. That information was then used by Liu and Sun to spy on and target the dissidents, prosecutors allege.
According to a sworn statement by an FBI agent filed with the court, the information allegedly collected by Taylor included that from passport photos, flight records and immigration records tied to several Chinese dissidents.
Prosecutors say the federal charges against Taylor and Miller are tied to allegations that they obstructed justice, including by destroying evidence, after approached by FBI agents. According to the sworn statement by the agent, Miller at one point admitted to deleting messages from his phone.
Neither man could be reached for comment. Their criminal case was filed in the Eastern District of New York.
“We will defend the rights of people in the United States to engage in free speech and political expression, including views the PRC government wants to silence,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matt Olsen said in a statement.
“As charged, these individuals aided agents of a foreign government in seeking to suppress dissenting voices who have taken refuge here,” he said. “The defendants include two sworn law enforcement officers who (chose) to forsake their oaths and violate the law.”
The website for Taylor’s investigation business describes him as a “decorated former federal agent and accomplished author.”
It says Taylor spent 25 years with the Department of Homeland Security, working assignments such as the Fugitive Task Force unit in Los Angeles and the joint Terrorist Task Force Unit in Washington, D.C.
Prosecutors described Miller as a 15-year employee of the Department of Homeland Security currently assigned as a deportation officer in Minnesota. According to court papers, he was previously stationed in Los Angeles, where he was supervised by Taylor.
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