University of Waterloo student 🇨🇳 Weiheng (Billy) Zeng has pleaded not guilty in a US federal court in a case a prosecutor described as involving "espionage-type activities."

Zeng, a Chinese citizen, is charged with making false statements following an FBI counter-intelligence investigation. He was arraigned in US District Court in Detroit on Nov 9.

Zeng was questioned by US federal agents as he tried to enter Michigan on Aug 23 after crossing the Ambassador Bridge from Windsor, Ont.

After three interviews, Zeng ultimately admitted accepting paid "taskings" on behalf of someone he believed was linked to the Chinese government.

Zeng has been in custody ever since.

On Nov 9, US Magistrate Judge Anthony Patti scheduled a bond hearing for next week.

A federal grand jury indicted Zeng last week on a single count of making false statements to US Customs and Border Protection agents. The move indicates jurors found there are reasonable grounds to believe a crime has been committed.

A self-described "photography lover" studying global business and digital arts, Zeng first raised US authorities' suspicions in April, after an incident captured on security video at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

At the time, FedEx employees spotted a man taking photos, climbing a forklift and attempting to open a locked delivery truck and a shipping container in the company's parking lot at the Chicago airport.

When he attempted to re-enter the US in Aug, Zeng provided conflicting reasons for trespassing and taking pictures. He initially told federal agents it was solely for hobby photography.

He later admitted the operation was carried out at the request of a shadowy "Chinese contact" who Zeng said he couldn't identify by name, but said he believed they worked for a Chinese government security agency.

Zeng told investigators his unnamed contact directed him to photograph aircraft and tail numbers, in exchange for $20-30 per picture.

Zeng recounted trespassing and taking pictures last year at a FedEx facility at Toronto's Pearson International Airport, at the request of the same, unidentified individual.

The allegations amount to “espionage-type activities”.

Zeng, who lives in Cambridge, Ont., also outlined to investigators a convoluted system he purportedly used to communicate with the unnamed individual, who paid him via bank transfer in yuan.

The "Chinese contact" would mail Zeng a new SIM card every four to five months, which he was directed to use in his Huawei cell phone.

“Zeng, at the direction of 'Chinese Contact,' would subsequently destroy the SIM cards, delete the conversations, and delete the photos he took.”

“The SIM card, which was from China Telecom, allowed Zeng to by-pass Canadian cellular network and connect directly with the Chinese provider network to send text messages to 'Chinese Contact.'”

Zeng's sister denied her brother was knowingly involved in espionage for Beijing.

"If my brother is a Chinese spy, then I'm Trump's father," Meixuan Wang wrote in a social media post in Sep.

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