DoJ Charges Arcadia, Calif. Mayor Eileen Wang of Being Illegal PRC Agent
The Sichuan, China-born naturalized U.S. citizen, 58, who also resigned as the San Gabriel Valley municipality’s mayor on June 11 — the same day the Justice Department charged her with “acting as an illegal agent of the People’s Republic of China” by acting “at the direction and control of PRC government officials” — pleaded guilty to the felony count and faces a maximum federal prison sentence of 10 years.
In her plea agreement, Wang admitted to working with Yaoning “Mike” Sun — her former fiancé who is currently serving a four-year federal prison sentence for acting as a covert agent of the PRC — on a website that purported to provide news for the local Chinese American community but was a pro-PRC propaganda vehicle. Wang also was in communication with John Chen, who is currently serving a 20-month federal prison sentence, described as a “high-level member of the PRC intelligence apparatus.” In a related story of the PRC’s attempts to use and infiltrate American politics, the New York Times reported that a NYC Chinese American community leader, Lu Jianwang, had also been convicted of “illegally working as a foreign agent.”
Shannon Lee, Assemblymember Kick Off Drive for Annual Bruce Lee Day
Already known as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, May could in the coming years have an additional day of recognition if a California politician and the daughter of the legendary martial arts movie maven get their wish — AB 2455 — to come true. At a May 13 news conference held in the main atrium of the San Francisco Public Library, Assemblymember Matt Haney (D-San Francisco) and Shannon Lee joined forces to introduce the proposal that would designate May 17 as Bruce Lee Day in California. The date was chosen to mark the day at age 18 when Lee returned from Hong Kong, where he grew up, to city of his birth, San Francisco. Were it enacted, Bruce Lee Day would become California’s first day of recognition honoring a Chinese American. Lee died July 20, 1973, just before the opening of the hit motion picture “Enter the Dragon.” In a related story, the United States Postal Service debuted a Bruce Lee forever stamp in February (see Feb. 20, 2025 Pacific Citizen, tinyurl.com/4ab5usxu). To view a video of the ceremony, visit tinyurl.com/mysad5ce.
Little Tokyo Service Center Taps Noelle Ito as Deputy Executive Director
According to the LTSC’s news release, Ito will provide strategic leadership for the organization’s development, communications and external relations functions. Prior to rejoining LTSC, where she began working for Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches when it was an LTSC program, she served as the senior board services lead at the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine. Ito earned her BA in Human Services from George Washington University and her MBA in nonprofit management from American Jewish University.
Duly Noted: Eatery Suehiro Confirms Return to Little Tokyo After ’23 Move
Although not new, since it had been referred to publicly as a future tenant at the First Street North development in Little Tokyo, Little Tokyo Service Center announced that Suehiro Cafe will be returning to Little Tokyo at an undetermined date. It moved in 2023. ¶ The JA Community Foundation announced the 10 recipients of its Spring 2026 grants. They are: the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, enTaiko, Little Tokyo Community Council, Makoto Taiko, Nichi Bei Foundation, Oregon Historical Society, Oakland Museum of California, OCO Club’s Helping Farms Feed Families, Riverside Museum Associates and Sonoma County Matsuri Festival. See tinyurl.com/5wenbyc3 for details.
— P.C. Staff
