TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — During internal reviews, the Ministry of National Defense discovered evidence of spying, leading to the arrest of a businessperson from Hong Kong and six retired or serving officers, reports said Tuesday.

The ministry’s Political Warfare Bureau found suspicious activities by a major named Yang (楊), per CNA. It informed the National Security Bureau and the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau, whose probe led to the arrest of seven suspects including Yang and their indictments for breaking laws including the National Security Act.

The ministry said it had established a certification system for officers involved in confidential information while strengthening the education of military personnel to counter intelligence activities.

Ding Xiaohu (丁小琥), 68, a Chinese businessperson with Hong Kong identity documents, was reportedly contacted by Chinese intelligence officials before he visited Taiwan in 2018 on the pretext of religious activities, the Liberty Times reported. He started setting up a network centered on two retired officers from the Air Force and from an anti-aircraft missile department.

The recruits approached former colleagues and students to expand the spy network. An Air Force major joined with his wife, followed by her brother, Yang, and by an Army armored corps officer.

Investigators discovered the group and tracked down the financial flows linking them. Ding wired a total of NT$11.12 million (US$356,000) to eight accounts in Taiwan to fund the operation, prosecutors said. They asked the court to impose long sentences on the military officers due to the serious nature of their betrayal.