Former News Anchor, California Democrat Staffer Arrested in Las Vegas ICE operation

Why is San Francisco called “Beijing-by-the-Bay?” the Globe asked in 2020, reporting on then-Rep. Eric Swalwell’s sexual relationship with accused Chinese Communist government spy Fang Fang.

With all of the China problems that California politicians already have, this week a former news anchor, and current California Legislative Democrat staffer was arrested by federal immigration authorities in Las Vegas, for overstaying his VISA by failing to depart by May 15, 2020,” according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Here’s a short list of California’s China connections:

•  Gov. Newsom’s dirty BYD $1.5 billion mask deal during Covid
• former Senator Dianne Feinstein’s Communist Chinese spy driver
• former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s Chinese spy Fang Fang
• the shady Chinese company operating a mysterious COVID lab in Reedley, CA in the central San Joaquin Valley,
• Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang guilty of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for the People’s Republic of China (PRC)
• California Governor Gavin Newsom and Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting in a surprise 2023 meeting in Beijing, and
• Gov. Newsom Mocked For “Cringe-Inducing Moments” during trip to China,
• California Air Resources Board using two Chinese studies on Air Pollution and Mortality in the Medicare Population, also known as the Advanced Clean Fleets rule to achieve a total zero-emissions truck and bus fleet by 2045,
• California’s public employees retirement system (CalPERS) investing their retirement funds in companies controlled by the Chinese military.
• Even as San Francisco Mayor, Gavin Newsom visited China multiple times, including a 2005 trip with then-Senator Dianne Feinstein that marked the 25th anniversary of the San Francisco–Shanghai sister-city relationship (originally established by Feinstein).
• This week we learned that the Family tied to suspected Chinese spy Christine Fang (Fang Fang) gave $4.4 million to Governor Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, other California politicians, to help “disincentivize these leaders from noticing Chinese Communist Party political interference.”

“Former KTSF news anchor Ho-Yin Mo, who now works for California Assemblywoman Catherine Stefani (D-San Francisco), was taken into custody Thursday at Harry Reid International Airport,” the DailyMail reported.

“On January 13, 2020, Mo lawfully entered the U.S. on a temporary basis but illegally overstayed his VISA.

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to the Daily Mail on Tuesday that ‘ICE arrested Ho-Yin Mo, an illegal alien from Hong Kong, during a targeted enforcement operation.’”

Prior to working for Assemblywoman Stefani, Mo worked for a Chinese-language television station based in San Francisco.

Matt Quan posted on X:

All San Francisco politicians, in this case Mayor Daniel Lurie, serve China. No exceptions. Assemblymember Catherine Stefani’s staff, Ho Yin Mo, is in the U.S. illegally, and is an illegal Chinese Ministry of State Security unregistered foreign agent and spy.

Stefani, CA Dems, and the Legislature should be explaining to the FBI why they had a Chinese national on staff to begin with.

Moreover, given the theft of classified F-35 components (which inherently involved CA, UT, or TX), the U.S. State Department should PNG and close both the Hong Kong Economic, Trade, and Cultural Office (HKETCO) office AND the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco.

We either start separating the good from the bad, or everyone will pay for China’s sin.

All San Francisco politicians, in this case Mayor Daniel Lurie, serve China. No exceptions.

Assemblymember Catherine Stefani’s staff, Ho Yin Mo, is in the U.S. illegally, and is an illegal Chinese Ministry of State Security unregistered foreign agent and spy.

Stefani, CA Dems,… https://t.co/KVKCFk1qBN pic.twitter.com/JdSyHzfiPH

— Matt Quan (@matthewrquan) September 24, 2026

“While it may come as a surprise to many Californians, foreign espionage is nothing new in the golden state. California has been a hotbed for foreign intelligence collection and surveillance for over 30 years,” the Berkeley Political Review reported in 2018.

“What makes Chinese spying in California, particularly the Bay Area, so insidious is its defiance of traditional tradecraft norms. Workers on J-visas have a long history of utilizing their position within America’s best technology companies to supply the Chinese state, and subsequently its domestic industries, with insider information on American technology.”

Department of Homeland Security said Mo, a Hong Kong native, entered the United States lawfully on a temporary basis on January 13, 2020, but failed to depart by May 15, 2020. “On January 13, 2020, Mo lawfully entered the United States on a temporary basis but illegally overstayed his welcome by failing to depart by May 15, 2020,” DHS told the New York Post on Tuesday. “Work authorization or a pending application do NOT confer legal status in the United States.”

Mo joined Assemblywoman Catherine Stefani’s office in 2025 and formerly worked at a Chinese-language television station based in San Francisco, the Post reported. “He was also involved in London Breed’s unsuccessful 2024 mayoral reelection campaign, where he worked as an outreach organizer focused on Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.”