The US State Department has designated Zhao Fugang, head of the Overseas Chinese Service Center in Fiji, for visa sanctions, saying he engaged in significant corruption on behalf of China-based actors.
The designation generally bars Zhao and his immediate family members from entering the United States. The State Department said he used his public position to pay bribes to Fijian citizens in support of China-based government, business and criminal interests. It said the alleged conduct harmed US interests in Fiji.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission provided information to US agencies for the decision. The newspaper described the move as part of a wider contest for influence in the South Pacific.
The SMH and 60 Minutes reported in 2024 that Western agencies had secretly investigated Zhao and that Australian authorities listed him as a priority target in July 2023. Their reporting described allegations that he led a regional criminal network and worked to expand Beijing’s influence in Fiji. These allegations have not been established in court.
The newspaper also reported that Australian officials were concerned that an elite Fijian police task force working with Australia and New Zealand against drug trafficking and organized crime may have been compromised by the alleged network. The SMH said its reporting drew on police files and briefings from officials in Suva.
Zhao has denied wrongdoing. The SMH said it was not asserting that he was guilty of a crime. Experts cited by the newspaper said his alleged efforts to build formal ties between Chinese and Fijian police made the Australian agency’s earlier priority designation significant.
Australian officials had anticipated the US action for at least 18 months, sources told the newspaper. China’s Foreign Ministry had previously reacted angrily to Zhao’s inclusion on Australia’s priority list.