Alexander Yuk Ching Ma, a former CIA officer, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Wednesday after pleading guilty to charges of espionage for China, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The 71-year-old Ma had reached a plea agreement with prosecutors in May, admitting to conspiring to gather and deliver national defense information to Chinese intelligence.
Ma, who served with the CIA from 1982 to 1989, collaborated with a now-deceased relative who had also worked for the agency. The DOJ disclosed that Chinese intelligence officers initially approached the two in March 2001. In exchange for $50,000, they provided the Chinese officials with a significant volume of classified defense information.
This case is part of the U.S. government’s ongoing efforts to combat espionage activities targeting sensitive national security data.
