Chinese student charged in U.S. for alleged airport surveillance

Weiheng Zeng, a Chinese citizen and University of Waterloo student, has been charged in the United States with making false statements following a counter-intelligence investigation. Zeng was arrested on August 23 at the Ambassador Bridge while attempting to enter the U.S. from Canada.

The FBI investigation stems from an incident in April at a FedEx cargo facility at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, where surveillance footage showed a man climbing a forklift and attempting to open locked trailers. Authorities later linked Zeng’s vehicle to the scene. Zeng is also accused of photographing facilities at Toronto Pearson International Airport in October.

According to FBI affidavits, Zeng allegedly admitted to taking photographs of specific aircraft and tail numbers at the request of a contact he believed to be a Chinese government official. He reportedly received payments via bank transfers for these assignments. Investigators found photos of military aircraft and images of Zeng and others in tactical gear holding what he claimed were airsoft guns on his mobile device. To maintain contact, Zeng allegedly used a Huawei phone and Chinese SIM cards provided by his contact every few months, which he was instructed to destroy after use.