Two Chinese nationals suspected of trying to intercept satellite communications from an Airbnb rental in southwestern France have been placed under formal investigation. Police were alerted last week after locals noticed a roughly two-metre-wide satellite dish at the property in Gironde, coinciding with an internet outage. The two Chinese and two others were arrested on Wednesday.
The Paris public prosecutor's office announced on Thursday that two Chinese nationals suspected of trying to intercept satellite communications from a base in an Airbnb rental property in southwestern France have been placed under formal investigation. Police were first alerted last week when locals noticed a roughly two-metre (6.6-foot) wide satellite dish being installed at the property in Gironde, which coincided with an internet outage.
The Chinese nationals and two others were arrested on Wednesday in the alleged spying case involving the satellite dish. Two of them have been put in pre-trial detention, while the other two are under judicial supervision, the office added.
The case is the latest in a series of incidents involving allegations of Chinese spying in Europe. Tensions between Beijing and Western powers over espionage have risen in recent years as Western intelligence agencies increasingly sound the alarm on alleged Chinese state-backed hacking activity.
