NEW YORK—Lin Ying, the former manager of a state-owned Chinese airline company, was sentenced to five years of probation on Nov. 21 for acting as an agent of the Chinese regime.
While Lin worked for Air China Limited at the John F. Kennedy Airport, she would smuggle packages at the direction of Chinese military officials aboard on flights from New York to Beijing.
Lin would also put the packages under the names of other passengers. This way, the packages of the Chinese officials avoided inspection by the U.S. government personnel.
Additionally, the United States accused Lin of encouraging other workers to assist the Chinese officials. She would tell them that because the company was Chinese, they should devote their loyalty to the Chinese communist regime.
The judge said the case involved a national security risk. Lin pleaded guilty to the charges on April 17 and again admitted that she worked against the national interest of the United States during her final testimony in the case.
U.S. attorneys suggested that Lin receive a four-year prison sentence, but the judge felt that five years of probation properly reflected Lin's actions, considering that she forfeited a total of $170,000 to the government as part of her guilty plea.