US journalist jailed for 2 years for working as a Chinese agent
An American journalist who lived in Beijing, worked for Chinese state media and pleaded guilty to helping Beijing collect US intelligence was sentenced on Tuesday to two years in federal prison. Thomas Weir Pauken II, 51, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and barred from overseas travel during that period, according to the US Justice Department. He also used the alias Tom…
US journalist Thomas Weir Pauken II, 51, has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for acting as a Chinese agent in the United States. Pauken, who lived in Beijing and worked for Chinese state media, pleaded guilty to helping Beijing collect US intelligence. He was also given three years of supervised release and barred from overseas travel during that period.
Pauken, whose alias is Tom McGregor, allegedly recruited intelligence assets, issued taskings, and sent reports to Ministry of State Security contacts while receiving at least $100,000 in return. He reportedly moved to China in 2010 and worked for state-run organisations such as CCTV and Xinhua. According to court papers, Pauken had a handler named "Cathy," who subjected him to a lie-detector test and informed him his reports were passed to senior Chinese leaders.
Pauken was arrested in February 2026 at a Washington hotel after encouraging a former Trump administration official to contact a woman in China believed to be an intelligence officer. Assistant Attorney General John A. Eisenberg stated that Pauken "betrayed his country for money" and exploited his US citizenship. FBI Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky warned that anyone aiding a foreign government against the US will be found and held accountable.
Written by urgent.news from Reuters Business via SCMP's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
