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Texas man fights for wife accused in China

Accused of spying, her trial date is indefinite; she faces death penalty

By LOUISE WATT, Associated Press
Published: October 6, 2016, 9:39pm

BEIJING — Nine days had passed since Jeff Gillis, at home in Houston, Texas, had last heard from his wife. During that phone call, she told Gillis she was extending her business trip in China, but he grew anxious. He filed a missing person’s report with U.S. consular officials whose response left him flabbergasted: His wife, a business consultant, had been detained by Chinese security agents almost two weeks earlier.

Now, 18 months later, Phan Phan-Gillis is still detained, charged with spying and awaiting trial in China, consigned to an unknown fate in a highly opaque and impenetrable legal system in which even the charges brought against her remain cloudy. Gillis said that his wife appears to have been accused of spying against China two decades ago, although even her Chinese lawyer said he has been barred by Chinese law from providing details.

Despite the scant information, Gillis has set about trying to prove his 56-year-old wife’s innocence. He hopes documents he has uncovered will help free Phan-Gillis. Her lawyer said her trial has been postponed indefinitely from its original Sept. 19 court date.

The case speaks to both rising suspicion between Beijing and Washington and China’s drive to pursue those accused of crimes occurring outside its borders. Gillis said part of the charge relates to alleged spying carried out within the U.S.

“China probably is now more aggressive in pursuing anyone who can be regarded as harming China’s interests,” said Fu Hualing, a law professor at the University of Hong Kong.

“If they think there’s a violation of Chinese criminal law and the impact is felt within China they are willing to pursue that and they think that they probably have the capacity to do that now,” he said. “Imagine: The case happened in the ’90s. It’s not like it happened recently.”

Phan-Gillis’ lawyer, Shang Baojun, said the American is charged with spying, but that he could not provide details because the case involves state secrets. The maximum sentence for spying is the death penalty.

The court in Nanning also refused to release specifics about the case.

“It is a closed trial because it involves state secrets, so it is inappropriate for us to release information … including the date of the trial,” said Tang Xingzhong, administrative head at the Nanning Intermediate People’s Court.

Jeff Gillis, 54, said the charge relates to “beyond ridiculous” allegations that Phan-Gillis went on a spy mission to Nanning in 1996, then returned to the U.S. and recruited Chinese citizens to work for a foreign spy organization within the U.S. in 1997 and 1998. He said the foreign spy organization is alleged to be the FBI. The FBI press office declined to comment.

Nanning is the capital of Guangxi, a poor farming region neighboring Guangdong province, where Phan-Gillis’ family has its roots. Ethnically Chinese, Phan-Gillis was born in Vietnam and left that country as a teenager after the end of the Vietnam War, ending up via a harrowing boat journey in a refugee camp in Malaysia. She became an American citizen, met Gillis in 2001 and married him a year later.

Gillis said his wife, a consultant who matched investors with projects, traveled to China numerous times on business and as a volunteer to promote cultural and business exchanges. Gillis said he had never heard his wife mention Guangxi until she brought it up in a call during her detention.

Phan-Gillis was detained in March 2015.

U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said that China “continues to withhold many details of the case.”

“We remain deeply concerned about Ms. Phan-Gillis’ welfare and continue to monitor her case closely,” he said in a statement.

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