The mayor of an affluent Los Angeles suburb resigned from office Monday after federal prosecutors announced she had agreed to plead guilty to covertly serving as a foreign agent for the Chinese government — a case that the FBI called a stark warning about foreign interference in American local politics.

Eileen Wang, 58, of Arcadia, California, was charged with one count of acting in the United States as an illegal agent of a foreign government. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Wang admitted that between late 2020 and 2022, she promoted pro-Beijing propaganda at the direction of Chinese government officials — without ever notifying the U.S. government as required by law.

"Mayor Wang admitted to acting as a foreign agent from at least 2020 through 2022 — promoting PRC propaganda in the U.S. and acting at PRC's direction to promote their interests." — FBI Director Kash Patel

Wang and her co-conspirator, Yaoning "Mike" Sun, 65, of Chino Hills, operated a website called the U.S. News Center, which publicly portrayed itself as a news source for Southern California's Chinese American community. In reality, prosecutors say the site was used to distribute content handed down by Chinese government officials through encrypted WeChat messages — including articles denying the persecution of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang and amplifying narratives favorable to Beijing.

In one documented instance from June 2021, a PRC official sent Wang a link to a letter published in the Los Angeles Times written by China's consul general, instructing her to republish and promote it. Wang also coordinated propaganda articles with a high-level PRC intelligence figure who had personally met President Xi Jinping, according to court documents.

Sun, who also served as the treasurer for Wang's 2022 city council election campaign, was sentenced to four years in federal prison after pleading guilty to the same foreign agent charge in October 2025. Wang was elected in November 2022 to the five-member Arcadia City Council, where the mayor is selected on a rotating basis among council members.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement: "Individuals in our country who covertly do the bidding of foreign governments undermine our democracy." The City of Arcadia confirmed it "supports a thorough and comprehensive investigation" and said no city finances, staff, or decision-making processes were found to be involved. The City Council is expected to discuss replacing Wang ahead of the November 2026 election.

Wang's attorneys, Brian A. Sun and Jason Liang, said she wished to apologize for "mistakes she has made in her personal life," adding that her conduct predated her election to office. She is expected to make her first court appearance in the coming weeks.