SUVA, Fiji — The United States on Wednesday designated Zhao Fugang, a prominent businessman in Fiji, for “significant corruption” on behalf of Chinese government, business and criminal interests, barring him and his immediate family from entering the U.S., RNZ Pacific and AFP reported.
“Zhao abused his public position by paying bribes to Fijian citizens to advance China-based government, business, and criminal interests,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said, according to AFP. “His actions constituted significant corruption and adversely affected US interests in Fiji.” Zhao is director of the Overseas Chinese Service Center in Suva and owns the Yue Lai Hotel, where the center is located.
Zhao denied the allegations. “They are unsubstantiated,” he said in a statement from his lawyers, according to AFP. “I have not been questioned by any Fijian authority about these matters, and no charge has been laid against me.” He said he had written to U.S. officials asking for details of the allegations. The U.S. Embassy in Suva said his actions had left Fiji open to “malign foreign influence” by Chinese government, business and criminal actors.
A 2024 investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project alleged that Zhao was a key point man for Beijing’s interests in Fiji and that Australian law enforcement suspected him of being a top player in a syndicate linked to human trafficking, money laundering and drug smuggling, AFP said. His lawyer called those claims “false and misleading.” China’s embassy in Suva did not respond to AFP. The U.S. also issued corruption designations this year against Palauan politicians Hokkons Baules and Anderson Jibas, RNZ reported.
Sources: RNZ Pacific, AFP
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