FBI brings alleged China-linked hacker to US in rare extradition as Patel defends Italy trip
FBI Director Kash Patel says a trip to Italy that raised questions earlier in 2026 helped set the stage for the arrest of a Chinese national accused of hacking U.S....
By Fox News · Fox News
FBI Director Kash Patel says a trip to Italy that raised questions earlier in 2026 helped set the stage for the arrest of a Chinese national accused of hacking U.S. COVID-19 research. Xu Zewei is now in U.S. custody after what Patel described as a coordinated operation with Italian authorities, marking a rare case in which an alleged state-linked hacker has been extradited to face charges in the United States. Xu was extradited from Italy in recent days and faces federal charges tied to a 2020–2021 cyber campaign that prosecutors say targeted sensitive research, including work related to COVID-19 treatments and vaccines. Patel told Fox News Digital in an interview the bureau was able to "directly tie" Xu to China ’s Ministry of State Security and its Shanghai bureau, though additional details remain classified pending declassification. FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL SAYS BUREAU RAMPING UP AI TO COUNTER DOMESTIC, GLOBAL THREATS Patel said the arrest was the result of a carefully coordinated effort with Italian authorities led by Prefect Vittorio Pisani of the Italian National Police, carried out within a narrow window before additional legal challenges could delay the suspect’s extradition. Officials from both countries worked to ensure Xu would be in Italy, and "we created an opportunity with our partners in Italy to have him apprehended there," Patel said. Patel told Fox News Digital the trip, which the FBI said included meetings with Italian law enforcement and Olympic security coordination, also helped lay the groundwork for the arrest. He faced criticism at the time after being seen attending Olympic events, with questions raised about whether the travel was primarily official. Patel described the suspect as "one of the top two cyber criminals in the world for China," alleging he played a key role in hacking efforts aimed at American universities, immunologists and virologists during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. "We were able to bring him to Houston for prosec…