Alleged Chinese agent has ties to overseas scam group, federal court records show

October 16, 2026 / 6:00 AM EDT / CBS News

A California realtor charged with working as a Chinese agent has connections to an alleged Cambodian criminal organization accused of using forced labor to run multibillion-dollar scams targeting Americans, a CBS News investigation reveals.

Last week, the FBI charged Irvine realtor Wanying "Heather" Zhang, 34, with operating as an unregistered foreign agent after they allegedly caught her surveilling the Taiwanese president's son in Seattle in 2025. She was accompanied by a travel companion whom CBS News has identified as Fatai Miao, 54.

Both Zhang and Miao have links to individuals involved in sprawling criminal enterprises, according to several federal court filings reviewed by CBS News.

The web of connections provides a rare glimpse into the multi-faceted dealings of a woman who federal agents have alleged spent years engaged in intelligence work on U.S. soil for the Chinese government.

During her time in California, Zhang appears to have traveled in wealthy circles, posing for photos on the Chinese social media site Xiaohongshu in a Bugatti sports car. She wrote that the car belonged to her friend. The car appears to be owned by a man described by the Justice Department as…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/world/