Federal prosecutors allege that the defendants acted as “unregistered agents” of Beijing and secretly operated a Chinese police station in Manhattan’s Chinatown area.

According to the indictment, the two acted under the direction of an officer from China’s Ministry of Public Security. They are accused of conspiring to monitor, harass, and disrupt the activities of Chinese dissidents on U.S. soil.

If convicted on all counts, the man could face up to 25 years in prison.