Chinese woman charged with espionage remains in custody

A Chinese woman detained in early May on suspicion of espionage has had her pre-trial detention extended by four weeks by Oslo District Court. The woman was arrested on Andøya and is one of three individuals connected to the same Norwegian company implicated in the case.

Norway's domestic intelligence agency, PST, alleges that a foreign state is orchestrating espionage activities under the guise of a Norwegian-registered company. This company, in turn, is reportedly owned by a Singapore-based entity. PST believes the suspects attempted to deploy a satellite receiver on Andøya.

Authorities seized a 22-ton mobile satellite receiver from the Chinese woman in a container at Oslo harbor on April 17. She was subsequently arrested on May 7 and charged with complicity in an attempted gross intelligence operation against state secrets, with her detention ordered the following day.

The accused woman maintains that the satellite receivers lack the technical capacity to gather classified information, according to court documents. The case highlights ongoing concerns about foreign intelligence operations and the security of sensitive information within Norway.

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lacks the technical capacity to gather secret information