British businessman accused of spying for China tried to hire former Met Police detective to dig up intelligence on top MPs who were critical of Beijing

A British businessman accused of spying for Beijing asked private investigators to dig up 'sensitive' information on some of China's fiercest critics in Westminster, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

John Miller, 64, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and his handler Cui Guanghai, 44, were arrested in Belgrade in April last year in an FBI sting, accused of trying to buy American-made missile launchers, radar units and drones for the People's Liberation Army.

The pair were awaiting extradition to the US when they fled house arrest and boarded a private jet to Beijing in the dead of night, and have not been seen since.

They faced up to 40 years in jail if convicted of US smuggling, stalking and arms-export charges.

Now it can be revealed that Miller, a recruitment specialist and father-of-three, asked former Scotland Yard detective Keith Hunter to compile dossiers on seven leading parliamentarians who had been sanctioned by Beijing for campaigning against the persecution of Uyghur Muslims.

Messages seen by the MoS show Miller asked Mr Hunter's firm, Animus Associates Ltd, to investigate Tom Tugendhat, then-chairman of the foreign affairs committee, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Nusrat Ghani, Neil O'Brien, Tim Loughton, Lord Alton and Baroness Kennedy. 

The messages show the work was commissioned on behalf of Fise Technology, a Hong Kong front company owned by Cui, a senior intelligence officer in China's feared Ministry of State Security.

Mr Hunter asked Miller to spell out the objectives, writing: 'We understand that we need to look at integrity and credibility issues against all of them but is this including anything in their home lives, business, historic?' 

John Miller, 64, from Tunbridge Wells, is accused by the FBI of trying to procure weapons and spying for China

Later that evening, Miller told him they needed 'something' on Mr Tugendhat and Sir Iain 'to impress' the client, adding: 'It doesn't have to be dirt.' Mr Hunter, who had told Miller he would send a proposal for the work, replied: 'OK.'

But two days later, Miller told Mr Hunter that another team had given Fise 'financials and phone records' on the same politicians and that the client had 'closed the case' with Animus.

Last night, former Conservative leader Sir Iain said: 'I am astonished. Nobody has informed me that this was happening, that I was being targeted by this nodding donkey of the Chinese, who has now fled the country.'

There is no suggestion that Animus acted unlawfully or were aware of the company's or Miller's connection to the Chinese state.

Animus produced only brief biographies of each politician based on publicly available information as part of a proposal.

More than 9,000 messages from 2018 to 2023 between Miller and his associates were passed to this newspaper by James DiFiore, 50, a Canadian journalist who worked as an FBI informant.

Miller had tasked Mr DiFiore with writing anti-American articles for a Chinese audience and making podcasts that showed the US in a negative light. He was later recruited by the FBI as a 'covert human intelligence source' against Miller and Cui, and says he was instrumental in uncovering how the pair were trying to get American weapons.

Mr DiFiore has told the MoS he now feels let down by the FBI, accusing it of effectively revealing his identity in an indictment it lodged against Miller and Cui.

The former mole claims he was promised £111,000 by the FBI when the assignment finished, but has not received the sum.

He told the MoS: 'The FBI burnt me in a court document, and did not pay me the $150,000 they owed me. They had a sacred responsibility of duty of care, and completely abandoned that responsibility.'

On August 4 last year, Miller and Cui fled house arrest in Belgrade, Serbia, boarding a Chinese-owned Gulfstream jet bound for Beijing.

Last night, Animus said: 'Animus had a short-lived relationship with Miller. No investigative work was produced for Mr Miller or any entity associated with him.

'When it became apparent that Mr Miller sought to engage Animus in practices that fell outside lawful open-source methods, Animus refused, refunded all monies received and terminated the relationship.'