FBI makes arrests over alleged secret Chinese 'police stations' in New York

US prosecutors have arrested two men in New York for allegedly operating a Chinese "secret police station" in Manhattan's Chinatown neighbourhood.

Liu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, both New York City residents, face charges of conspiring to act as agents for China and obstruction of justice.

They are expected to appear in federal court in Brooklyn on Monday.

China has previously denied operating the stations, calling them "service centres" for nationals overseas.

Mr Jianwang and Mr Jinping worked together to establish the first overseas police station in the United States on behalf of China's Ministry of Public Security, the US Department of Justice alleged on Monday.

The outpost was closed in the fall of 2022, the department said, after those involved became aware of an FBI investigation into the station.

"This prosecution reveals the Chinese government's flagrant violation of our nation's sovereignty by establishing a secret police station in the middle of New York City," said Breon Pearce, the top prosecutor in Brooklyn.