China releases 3 'wrongfully detained' Americans, White House says

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Son of man detained by China urges Biden to take action

Harrison Li, the son of Kai Li, says his father has been detained in China for seven years after he traveled there for a memorial service for his mother.

China is releasing three Americans Wednesday who the White House says were "wrongfully detained," Fox News has confirmed.

"We are pleased to announce the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung from detention in the People’s Republic of China," a National Security Council spokesperson said. "Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years. Thanks to this Administration’s efforts and diplomacy with the PRC, all of the wrongfully detained Americans in the PRC are home."

Mark Swidan of Texas was 38-years old when he went to China on business looking for flooring for construction work in November 2012. He was arrested after his driver and translator were allegedly found with drugs, the Texas Tribune has reported. 

A United Nations report determined that Swidan was not in possession of drugs on his person or in his hotel room, and records show he was not in China at the time of the alleged offense. 

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Mark Swidan was arrested in China in 2012 on drug charges the U.N. says aren't legitimate (Mark Swidan Family)

The U.N. report said that the 11 other people arrested with Swidan as part of the alleged trafficking ring were unable to identify him and that the conviction was based on his visiting a factory that had once been used to manufacture methamphetamine. 

His mother Katherine Swidan told Fox News last year that she wanted President Biden to demand Mark's release.

"I want him to say his name. I want him to be strong and make some demands. Diplomacy is important, I understand that, but this has been going on too long," Katherine Swidan said at the time. "He is not well at all. He's lost 100 pounds."

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Harrison Li holds a photo of his father, Kai Li, in Palo Alto, Calif., in January. (AP/Jeff Chiu)

Harrison Li, the son of Kai Li, told Fox News around a year ago that his father was detained in China while traveling there for a memorial service for his own mother.

"He was not allowed to get off the plane. As soon as he landed at Shanghai Pudong Airport, agents from the Ministry of State Security whisked him away and nobody has been able to see him outside of the prison ever since," Li said.

A website set up to raise awareness for Li said he had been held in China "since September 2016 on politically motivated charges of espionage and stealing state secrets. 

"He is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence at Shanghai’s Qingpu Prison," it added.

FILE - Families and friends of current and former hostages and detainees gather outside of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, May 3, 2023, to ask the Biden administration for more help. (AP/Susan Walsh)

Leung, who has permanent residency in Hong Kong, was also sentenced on espionage charges in 2023, according to The Wall Street Journal.

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He was first detained in April 2021. A friend of Leung told the newspaper that he was involved in charity work supporting low-income elderly people and students in Jiangsu province and has organized tours between the U.S. and China for musicians.  

Fox News’ Kate Sprague, Andrew Mark Miller and Kristine Parks contributed to this report.