US indicts former CIA officer suspected of spying for China

The Justice Department says it has indicted a former CIA case officer suspected of spying for China.

Jerry Chun Shing Lee, a 53-year-old US citizen who lives in Hong Kong, was charged yesterday with conspiracy to commit espionage and retention of information about US defence.

His lawyer says his client is not a Chinese spy. He says Lee is a loyal American who served in the US military and worked at the CIA.

Federal prosecutors allege that three years after Lee left the CIA in 2007, two Chinese intelligence officers approached him and offered to pay him for information. The indictment says Lee made numerous unexplained cash deposits, and lied to the U.S. government when asked about travel to China and his actions overseas.