Chinese State Media Promotes Dramatic Spy Bust by Ride-Hailing Driver, Sparking Doubts

State media claims a driver helped capture foreign spies. Insiders say the story’s inconsistencies suggest it may be staged.

The new angled building of the state-run Chinese Central TV headquarters dominates the surrounding area in Beijing. China Photos/Getty Images

Chinese state media is promoting a dramatic “counterespionage” case in which a ride-hailing driver allegedly helped detain two foreign spies outside a military compound—an account that has drawn skepticism from analysts and insiders.

China’s Ministry of State Security on April 16 published a statement and a 4-minute video labeled as a reenactment of the incident via state media Xinhua News Agency. The statement described a raid-share driver who identified suspicious behavior by two foreign passengers and assisted in their capture. The article and video didn’t identify the individuals or the foreign country allegedly involved, nor the time and location of the incident.

A Cinematic Account

According to the statement and the video, the driver picked up two foreign passengers in an urban area, and on the way to their destination, they passed by the gate of a military installation on the outskirts of a city. They appeared to be very interested in the compound, with the passenger seated in the front taking many photos of the front gate, walls, and surroundings from the moving car.