On 14 October 2026 the main trial began at the Municipal Court in Prague of a Chinese citizen accused of the criminal offence of unauthorised activity for a foreign power. According to the Czech News Agency, he is the first person in the Czech Republic prosecuted under this provision. Through his defence lawyer, the accused rejected the indictment.[1]
Indictment
In the indictment, state prosecutor Martin Bílý stated that the accused arrived in the Czech Republic in 2022 as a member of Chinese intelligence and was accredited with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic as a foreign journalist. According to the indictment, he collected political and economic information, built contacts with persons who could provide it to him, and produced at least 38 documents that he handed to a designated person. He faces up to five years in prison.[1] According to Novinky, the accused was detained in January 2026 by officers of the Národní centrála proti terorismu, extremismu a kybernetické kriminalitě.[2]
Defence and proceedings
The defence lawyer said that the accused feels innocent and disagrees with the description of the act and with its legal classification. He referred to a decision of the Constitutional Court under which an interest of the Czech Republic would have to be specifically and genuinely endangered. The lawyer proposed excluding the public from the further hearing; the court was to decide on the motion after a break.[1] The hearing was accompanied by strict security measures.[1]
The offence has been in force since February 2025. In its programme statement, the Government of the Czech Republic committed to abolishing it; Minister of Justice Jeroným Tejc (ANO) said in August that he had agreed with judges and prosecutors on making the provision more precise.[1]
Chronology
- — At a Prague court, a Chinese national accused of espionage for an intelligence service rejected the indictment. ČTK / České noviny Novinky.cz
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 14 October 2026
- Novinky.cz — 14 October 2026