A former senior official at the Federal Reserve found himself in a complicated situation after seeking a romantic connection on an Asian dating platform. This led to his involvement with someone who is alleged to be a Chinese spy, culminating in a case of blackmail involving explicit photos, according to reports.
In January 2025, John Harold Rogers, 65, was taken into custody by FBI agents in his neighborhood near Washington, D.C., while walking his dog, Prada. This happened just days before he was set to travel to China with his wife and daughter, as noted by a report from CNBC.
Although he was acquitted of charges related to economic espionage, Rogers was convicted for giving false statements to investigators and in July, he received a 38-month prison sentence.
“The facts of this case read like a spy novel,” remarked federal prosecutor Nicholas Hunter in the courtroom. It involved various elements—sexual encounters, financial manipulation, secretive meetings with dubious figures in China, fabricated identities, and a web of lies.
Rogers met Hummin Lee at a Federal Reserve-sponsored conference in Shanghai in 2013. The FBI later identified Lee as a Chinese intelligence operative using the alias Jin Chuan.
At that point, Rogers held a key advisory role within the Fed, which placed him in a sensitive position. Following the departure of his four grown children, he turned to AsianDating.com, where he, reportedly, began sharing explicit photos with others he met online.
As time went on, Lee became more involved in Rogers’ life, sending him gifts and organizing work-related presentations in China. Additionally, he helped Rogers pursue a relationship with Yu Liu, known as Yu Yu, a younger woman from Shanghai whom he had met through the dating site in late 2016.
Their relationship escalated quickly, with Lee arranging travel that allowed them to see each other, even assisting financially. After Yu Yu became pregnant during Rogers’ second visit, he proposed to her. However, she was still in the process of divorcing her husband, who demanded a considerable sum to finalize the divorce. Lee intervened, promptly sending Rogers images of Yu Yu’s divorce certificate after agreeing to help.
Rogers and Yu Yu were married in March 2018 in Hong Kong with Lee helping to organize the event and even signing their prenup as a witness. Rogers expressed gratitude towards Lee, saying he owed a significant part of his happiness to him.
But, while Rogers’ personal life appeared to flourish, his marriage faced challenges. Yu Yu accused him of infidelity, leading to tensions as another woman moved into his home. Things escalated to the point where there was a physical confrontation between the two women.
Feeling isolated again, Rogers went back to seeking companionship online, connecting with attractive women on social media and sharing explicit images from his Federal Reserve phone, even at the bank’s headquarters.
This attracted the attention of the individuals behind those social media accounts, who then demanded financial compensation and threatened to release the photos to senior officials at the Fed and even kidnap his daughter.
Concerned for his situation, Rogers reported the blackmail to Federal Reserve authorities in 2020, which subsequently led to an investigation into his connections with China.
When questioned about whether he had shared restricted information, Rogers asserted he had not. Prosecutors later argued this statement was false, while his legal team contended he had been under duress from the blackmail and was not intentionally lying.
As the investigation progressed, Rogers left his position at the Fed in 2021 and taught at Fudan University in China until he was arrested years later.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who led the prosecution, stated, “John Rogers spent years secretly funneling sensitive Federal Reserve information to Chinese spies, then looked investigators in the eye and lied about it.”
When asked during the trial about his current belief regarding Lee’s true identity, Rogers responded with a simple acknowledgment: “A spy.”
How did he feel about this realization? “Duped,” he confessed.
Rogers’ lawyer, Jonathan Gitlen, stated that he denies the allegations outlined in the indictment but indicated that further comments would come at a later date.
