UK reveals identity of Chinese ‘spy’ linked to Prince Andrew. Who is he?

The alleged spy was known only as “H6” until an anonymity order was lifted on Monday. In July 2023, the Home Office banned him from entering the UK.

British authorities have identified as Yang Tengbo an alleged Chinese spy who is banned from the UK and had links to Prince Andrew, the younger brother of King Charles.

A former UK security minister said Friday, december 13, that it was "extremely embarrassing" that a suspected Chinese spy had become a confidant of disgraced royal Prince Andrew. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

Yang was known only as “H6” until an anonymity order was lifted on Monday. Last week, the alleged spy, who has been pictured with former Prime Ministers David Cameron and Theresa May, among others, also lost an appeal challenging the ban on entering the UK.

Here's what we know about the Chinese “spy”

1. Yang, also known as Chris Yang, was born on March 21, 1974, documents presented at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission showed. He studied at a university in China and worked as a junior civil servant for “many years,” as per the documents.

2. He has been in the UK since 2002, studying language in London for one year, then taking a master’s degree at the University of York in Public Administration and Public Policy.

3. Since at least 2005, he has been dividing his time between the UK and China, and was granted “indefinite leave” to remain in the UK in 2013. He is listed as a director of Hampton Group International, a business consultancy which "acts as a bridge” between China and the world.

4. Yang is the founder-partner of Pitch@Palace, Prince Andrew's scheme to support entrepreneurs. He was found to have “forged” his links with the British royal.

5. Yang's brush with the law began in November 2021, when he was made to surrender his digital devices. In February 2023, he was “off-boarded” from a Beijing-bound flight from London, and in July, the Home Office declared he would be “excluded” from the UK due to alleged “covert and deceptive activity” on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.