Philippines Exposes China Spy Ring Inside DND, Navy, and Coast Guard

Philippine Navy Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad publicly disclosed on March 22 that China has shifted its South China Sea espionage strategy: instead of planting operatives with fake Filipino identities, Beijing is now recruiting actual Philippine defense personnel. Three suspects from the Department of National Defense (DND), the Philippine Navy, and the Philippine Coast Guard had already been arrested in early March after a counterintelligence operation. They allegedly leaked sensitive data — including the timing and routes of RORE (Rotation and Resupply) missions to BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal — to Chinese intelligence handlers. One suspect used a messaging app hidden inside a modified Tetris game on a tampered phone; payoffs were delivered in cash concealed inside fake food deliveries. NSC spokesperson Cornelio Valencia confirmed the arrests. China's embassy called the allegations 'malicious smears.'