Serbian authorities have launched a manhunt after two men accused of attempting to procure military equipment for China removed electronic ankle tags and fled house arrest in Belgrade, a court statement and U.S. indictments say.
Court papers and a statement from the Belgrade Higher Court seen by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network said British national John Miller, 63, and Chinese national Cui Guanghai, 43, had been confined to separate rented flats in the Serbian capital under court-imposed electronic monitoring while awaiting extradition to the United States. The court said the pair had successfully removed their electronic bracelets; an arrest warrant was issued for both on Aug. 15. It was not disclosed when they left the properties or whether they remain in Serbia.
U.S. prosecutors allege Miller and Cui were arrested in a U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation sting in Belgrade on April 24, hours before they were due to fly to Beijing. Court filings in the U.S. Eastern District of Wisconsin and the Central District of California accuse the pair of trying to obtain missile launchers, air-defence radars, Black Hornet microdrones and other sensitive military equipment and technologies on behalf of the People's Liberation Army.
A 14-page indictment filed in Wisconsin charges Miller with attempting to procure controlled defence articles and related offences, while a separate 67-page California indictment alleges the men targeted a Chinese-American artist critical of Beijing and sought to harass or intimidate him. The indictments say arms dealers the pair negotiated with were undercover FBI agents. If convicted, the men face up to 40 years in prison on some counts.
Court documents filed in the U.S. also include intercepted communications that prosecutors say show Miller referring to Chinese leader Xi Jinping as "The Boss." The FBI, as reflected in the filings, said those comments showed Miller's awareness that he was acting at the "direction and control" of the Chinese government. The FBI declined to comment when asked about the defendants' escape from electronic monitoring in Serbia.
Serbian authorities said the men had been held under house arrest as extradition proceedings advanced. Miller, described in filings as a recruitment specialist from Tunbridge Wells and a U.S. resident, has been publicly linked to a series of small businesses and earlier work arranging placements for Chinese students in the United Kingdom. Court filings identify Cui — also known as "Jack" in some documents — as an Edinburgh University graduate and say U.S. authorities suspect he works for China's military intelligence. Media reports and court filings have described Cui as an important contact for senior Chinese officials; the filings themselves are the source of that description.
Prosecutors in the United States detailed a range of equipment the defendants allegedly tried to procure, including devices approved by the U.S. National Security Agency for secure communications and small surveillance drones that can operate close to personnel and within buildings. The California indictment also alleges Miller organised surveillance and harassment of an artist identified as critical of Beijing and that discussions in some transcripts included threats of violence.
British security services, according to reporting and court filings, were liaising with U.S. authorities and examining both Cui's activities in the United Kingdom and Miller's background. Social media images and publicly available photographs have placed the two together in London and show Cui at locations in Edinburgh, Dublin and London, including near the Houses of Parliament, according to the filings.
Miller and Cui were detained at Belgrade's Hyatt Regency Hotel on April 24 after flying from Hungary, where they had met business associates, according to court documents and press reports. U.S. sources said agents timed the operation to wait until Cui left China and travelled to Europe before the arrest order was executed.
Family and acquaintances of Miller, who has lived and worked in both Britain and the United States, have told reporters they were surprised by the allegations. Court records describe Miller as having been involved in several businesses and having lived for periods in the U.S.; they also say his son has long-standing ties in China and is a friend of Cui.
Serbian authorities have not publicly detailed how the defendants removed their monitoring devices or their subsequent movements. The Belgrade Higher Court statement did not specify whether police believed the fugitives had left Serbia. U.S. prosecutors continue to pursue extradition procedures and criminal charges in federal courts in Wisconsin and California.
The case underscores rising scrutiny by Western law-enforcement and intelligence agencies of efforts to acquire advanced military technologies and of alleged covert activities by intelligence operatives abroad. The men’s disappearance from electronic monitoring has prompted investigation and cooperation among Serbian, British and U.S. authorities as they seek to locate and detain the two men pending legal proceedings.
The FBI did not respond to a request for comment on the developments in Serbia beyond its filings; Serbian officials did not provide further details on the fugitives' possible whereabouts when contacted by reporters.