UK drops charges against 2 men accused of spying for China

LONDON (AP) — British authorities said Monday they were dropping a criminal case against two men who had been accused of spying for China in Britain, including a former researcher who worked in the U.K. Parliament.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office said it was “extremely disappointing” that Christopher Cash, 30, and Christopher Berry, 33, would not face trial, but prosecutors said there was not enough evidence to proceed. Both men have denied wrongdoing.

The men had been charged in April 2024 with violating the Official Secrets Act by providing information or documents that could be “useful to an enemy” and “prejudicial to the safety or interests” of the U.K. between late 2021 and February 2023.

Cash was a parliamentary researcher who led the China Research Group. He worked closely with senior lawmakers focused on security and foreign affairs from the Conservative Party, which was in power at the time. The speaker of the House of Commons previously confirmed he was a parliamentary pass holder at the time of the alleged offenses.

Berry is reportedly an academic based in Oxfordshire who had taught in China since 2015.

They were accused of being in contact with each other and a person suspected of being a Chinese intelligence agent.

The men were due to go on a six-week trial next month at London’s Central Criminal Court, but prosecutors said Monday the case could not continue.

“The evidence in this case has been kept under continuous review and it has now been determined that the evidential standard for the offence indicted is no longer met,” the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement. It said “no further evidence will be offered.”

The Chinese Embassy has called the allegations fabricated and dismissed them as “malicious slander.” Cash’s lawyer maintained that his client “should never have been arrested.”

Starmer’s office said: “It is extremely disappointing that these individuals will not face trial.”

“Any attempt by a foreign power to infiltrate our Parliament or democracy is unacceptable,” Starmer’s office said. “The allegations made in this case are gravely concerning.”

Lawmaker Alicia Kearns, who worked with Cash when she served as chair of Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said she was not clear why the case was dropped. She had learned of evidence that showed “a clear line” between the suspects and the politburo of the Chinese Communist Party, she told Parliament Monday.

British intelligence authorities have ratcheted up their warnings about Beijing’s covert activities in recent years.