Disgraced former Arcadia mayor Eileen Wang has finally resurfaced in public after resigning in shame over allegations that she acted as a spy for the People’s Republic of China.
Wang stepped down after admitting in a federal plea agreement that she operated as an agent for Beijing — a stunning scandal prosecutors say highlights the growing threat of Chinese influence operations targeting the United States.
Now, for the first time since the explosive case rocked Southern California politics, Wang has been spotted quietly moving about Arcadia, keeping a low profile as federal scrutiny continues to swirl around her.
The California Post visited Wang’s Arcadia home hoping to confront the fallen Democrat about the allegations that turned her from rising political star to alleged foreign operative.
Sounds of movement could be heard from inside the home and a man’s voice was audible, but despite repeated knocks, nobody answered the door.
Not long afterward, a vehicle previously linked to Wang was seen pulling out of the driveway and heading to Garfield Medical Center.
Wang later emerged from the car, entered the facility and eventually left without speaking to reporters. The same vehicle was later spotted outside the Sheraton San Gabriel.
Neighbors told The Post the embattled ex-mayor has always kept an unusually low profile.
“She tends to keep to herself,” neighbor David Zhang, 28, told The Post. “The most we see of her is when she’s walking her big Husky around. We don’t really see her outside so we’re not too familiar with her personal situation. We wave at each other but that is the limit of our interaction. Sometimes she has a man over and we hear a bit of yelling and arguing that sounds like a domestic dispute.”
Another neighbor, Paul Brink, 86, recalled Wang canvassing door-to-door during her early political rise.
“She came door to door giving out her brochure,” Brink told The Post. “She was a regular candidate introducing herself and saying she was a neighbor running for council.”
He described her as a “nice dressed lady,” but declined to say whether he voted for her.
A next-door neighbor, who declined to provide his last name, said Wang rarely interacted with anyone nearby.
“When I see her it is just ‘hi’ and ‘bye’ when she is passing,” he said. “I see a guy coming by but I do not know if he lives there. I do not get into politics at all. Usually I just watch Netflix and YouTube. I do not watch the regular news.”
Federal prosecutors allege Wang worked alongside her then-fiancé, Yaoning Sun, to operate a website called “US News Center,” which authorities say masqueraded as a Chinese American news outlet while secretly advancing Beijing’s influence agenda between 2020 and 2022.
Prosecutors also allege John Chen helped bankroll Wang’s 2022 Arcadia City Council campaign alongside Sun while allegedly reporting back to handlers connected to the Chinese government.
Wang’s political ascent accelerated after she switched from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party in 2022, the same year prosecutors say the alleged foreign influence campaign ramped up.
Despite the scandal now surrounding her, Wang was once celebrated by top Democrats. In 2024, Rep. Judy Chu named Wang “Woman of the Year,” applauding her “strong voice, leadership, and dedication to serving her community.”
