USA Shut Down Business Linked to China Near B-2 Bomber Base

Authorities in the US state of Missouri have begun proceedings to shut down a business that operates a trailer park located directly adjacent to Whiteman Air Force Base.

This decision was made following an investigation by the Daily Caller News Foundation, which revealed links between the property owners and the intelligence services of the People’s Republic of China.

The case has attracted particular attention because Whiteman Air Force Base is a strategic facility where American B-2 Spirit stealth bombers are based.

According to business records, the property is controlled through a network of shell companies by Canadian couple Esther May and Chen Hu. The investigation established their links to Chinese tycoon Miles Guo, who previously publicly identified himself as a former PRC intelligence agent. In 2024, Guo was convicted of fraud involving more than $1 billion and is currently awaiting sentencing.

Concerns about the security of Whiteman Air Force Base intensified in early January when federal prosecutors charged a Chinese citizen. He had illegally entered the United States and was detained while photographing B-2 aircraft near the base fence.

A similar situation was reported in Louisiana, where the headquarters of the Air Force Global Strike Command, which controls nuclear bombers and ballistic missiles, is surrounded by golf courses owned by a Chinese intelligence officer.

More cases similar to the airbase with B-2 Spirit bombers

These are far from the only cases of Chinese spies acquiring real estate near US military infrastructure.

The first high-profile case was the Fufeng Group project in North Dakota (2021–2023). The Chinese agribusiness company purchased 150 hectares of land near Grand Forks to build a corn processing plant. The site was located just 20 km from Grand Forks Air Force Base, home to Global Hawk reconnaissance drones and space communications centers.

Another example is the attempt to build the Blue Hills wind farm in Texas. GH America Energy, a company linked to a former Chinese military officer, purchased 50,000 hectares of land near Laughlin Air Force Base. This is the largest US Air Force pilot training center, and the appearance of a Chinese facility there posed risks of espionage and potential sabotage of the state’s power grid.

In response to this threat, the state of Texas passed the Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act. The new act prohibited companies from unfriendly countries from connecting to the state’s critical infrastructure.

No less resonant was the case of a crypto farm in Wyoming in 2024. MineOne Partners, a company with Chinese roots, purchased land for cryptocurrency mining less than 1.6 km from Francis E. Warren Air Force Base. This is one of the most important US nuclear bases, where Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles are located.

In May 2024, President Biden issued a special decree forcing MineOne to sell the land and dismantle all equipment.