US Lawmakers Seek Probe Into Possible China Link in California Tiananmen Museum Attack

July 10, 2026

Washington: Two senior Republican lawmakers have urged the US Justice Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate whether China had any connection to the vandalism of a Tiananmen Square memorial museum in California.

Representatives Chris Smith of New Jersey and John Moolenaar of Michigan made the request in a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, calling for a thorough investigation into the attack on the June Fourth Massacre Memorial Museum in El Monte.

Museum vandalised ahead of Tiananmen anniversary

According to the lawmakers, unidentified individuals broke into the museum shortly before the 37th anniversary of the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. The intruders allegedly spray-painted walls and exhibits, damaged property and interfered with the museum’s surveillance system.

Smith said the museum preserves the historical record of the Tiananmen Square crackdown and urged authorities to determine whether the incident was more than an act of ordinary vandalism.

Lawmakers cite concerns over transnational repression

The lawmakers asked the Justice Department, including the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and National Security Division, to work with local authorities to determine whether the vandalism was linked to the Chinese government, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), or individuals acting in support of Beijing.

Moolenaar said the CCP has repeatedly been accused of attempting to silence critics abroad through transnational repression and stressed the need to protect the rights and safety of Chinese democracy advocates living in the United States.

Request for federal briefing

The lawmakers also pointed to previous incidents in California involving alleged intimidation of Chinese dissidents, including attacks linked to Liberty Sculpture Park and artist Chen Weiming, as well as violence targeting anti-CCP demonstrators during the 2023 APEC summit in San Francisco.

In their letter, they requested a written response and briefing from the Justice Department on the investigation, existing reporting mechanisms for targeted communities and whether law enforcement agencies have sufficient resources to identify possible foreign involvement in such incidents.

China has long restricted public discussion of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, and commemorations of the event remain prohibited in mainland China.