A US journalist sentenced to 2 years in federal prison for acting as an illegal agent for China
Summary
An American journalist, Thomas Weir Pauken II, was sentenced to two years in federal prison for acting as an agent for the Chinese government without proper disclosure. Pauken pleaded guilty to supporting Chinese intelligence operations and was also given supervised release with travel restrictions.Key Facts
- Thomas Weir Pauken II, aged 51, pleaded guilty to acting as an illegal agent for China inside the U.S.
- He was sentenced to two years in prison and 36 months of supervised release with no travel overseas.
- Pauken worked for Chinese state media, including CCTV and Xinhua, after moving to China in 2010.
- From 2019 to 2026, he reported to Chinese government contacts and was paid at least $100,000.
- Pauken recruited people to provide classified information to China and helped facilitate communication tools.
- He was arrested in February 2025 after being stopped at a U.S. border checkpoint.
- Pauken admitted to supporting Chinese intelligence but said he did not provide classified documents himself.
- He used the alias Tom McGregor to separate his work from his family name, linked to Texas politics.
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