BEIJING – Chinese police are investigating a case of illegal foreign exchange activity and money laundering following tip-offs from the United States, state media reported on Wednesday. This marks a rare instance of collaboration on narcotics between the two superpowers.
The U.S. and China resumed discussions on counter-narcotics and law enforcement cooperation at the beginning of the year. China’s public security department praised the case as a successful example of Sino-U.S. anti-drug cooperation.
The news aligns with information released by the U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday, alleging that Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel conspired with groups based in California and connected to Chinese underground banking to launder over $50 million in drug-trafficking proceeds. The Justice Department indicated close coordination with law enforcement in Mexico and China.
Chinese state media, citing the public security department, reported that an investigation found that since 2017, a man surnamed Tong started a car dealership in the U.S. to sell vehicles and offer Chinese yuan and U.S. dollar exchange services for car-buying customers. This operation later expanded into illegal foreign exchange trading and money laundering activities.
The suspect, identified in the superseding indictment as Peiji Tong, was arrested and the case is under further investigation, according to Xinhua and CCTV news outlets. When questioned about the case at a regular news conference, China’s foreign affairs ministry deferred to the competent authorities.
The United States has been advocating for deeper law enforcement cooperation with China, particularly to address the fentanyl abuse crisis, which has become a major cause of death in the U.S. Efforts include tackling illicit finance and imposing further controls on the chemicals used to manufacture fentanyl.
China’s National Health Commission announced that 46 substances will be added to the “supplementary list of controlled non-pharmaceutical narcotic drugs and psychotropic drugs” from July 1. These developments coincide with the expected visit of Rahul Gupta, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, to Beijing for meetings with high-level Chinese officials.
Additionally, on Wednesday, the National Drug Control Office released its annual drug situation report, revealing that authorities had solved 42,000 drug-related cases, arrested 65,000 criminal suspects, and seized 25.9 tons of various drugs over the past year.