Is a secret Chinese Communist Party (CCP) front operation hiding in plain sight in Minnesota’s capital city? A viral investigative report by the Breitbart News Foundation and the Government Accountability Institute identified a questionable building in St. Paul, Minn.
Alpha News went to the building to look for ourselves.
The report states that the building, located in St. Paul on North Eustis Street, “serves several functions for the CCP—none of them good for the United States.”
The report discusses the CCP’s influence operations, known as “united front work,” in Minnesota. Chinese dictator Xi Jinping describes the operation as one of the CCP’s “magic weapons” and one that helps “undermine the sovereignty and integrity of the political system of targeted states.”
The report states that CCP operatives use the building as their headquarters to curry favor with American politicians, like Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. The building is also used to provide services for Chinese Americans in Minnesota—particularly those who are still loyal to Beijing, according to the report. Meetings with CCP diplomats and dignitaries are also held there.
In taking a lead from the joint investigation, Alpha News senior reporter Liz Collin asked Allen Shen to accompany her on a visit to the building and share his insights.
Shen is a Minnesotan, born in China, and an Army veteran who previously ran for a seat in the Minnesota House as a Republican. For years, Shen has been sounding the alarm
about what he calls “shocking similarities” between Minnesota under Gov. Walz and China under Mao’s Cultural Revolution.
Standing outside the building, which has an adult daycare sign, Shen explained why he wanted to see what was going on for himself.
“I think we are all very concerned to know the truth. So that’s why we’re here. It’s like whatever the government’s doing, whether it’s to benefit themselves or they’re bought off, like we need to know. We should know what’s going on,” Shen said.
As Collin and Shen went inside, they initially couldn’t find anyone. Upstairs, they found a tiny office with a sign that said “HTL International Cooperation”—which, according to the Breitbart report, is supposedly the headquarters of this Chinese shipping company in the United States.
But the report also raises another red flag: HTL International describes itself on its website as a transport and logistics company that can ship Class I dangerous goods—like explosives—the report says.
The report also states that at least three of HTL International’s partners “are state-owned entities that have been banned in the United States for working with the Chinese military.”
Shen was suspicious and said, “Their North America headquarters are right in that building where the seniors live, and then you go, OK, that’s weird.”
Collin asked Shen how concerned he was after reading the investigative reports and seeing the building—and the so-called headquarters in an adult daycare building—for himself.
Shen replied, “It’s very concerning because Biden allowed, Obama too allowed foreign adversary governments to come in and buy a lot of land and infiltrate into all levels of government … and Tim Waltz went to China 40-plus times, right? All those things when you connect the dots, it seems like there has been a longtime infiltration.” He added, “There has to be some kind of connection.”
As a veteran and someone familiar with Minnesota politics, Shen also explained how elected officials “would give China a very positive image” and have been “pushing Beijing’s policies” at least on “some level.”
“They want to do everything they can to present a very peaceful, very good, very positive image. It’s part of their global initiative. That’s what Walz did for years. He brought students to the Great Wall and said how nice and good and of course, they’re not going to take you to the really bad part. They’re not going to take you to the organ harvesting camp,” Shen said.
While looking around inside, Collin and Shen eventually found someone and asked to speak with a manager. After Shen had a brief conversation in Chinese, Collin explained the Breitbart report and the reason for their visit, including over the phone with someone in charge.
They were told to leave a name and phone number to receive a call back—and then they were asked to leave.
In describing the interaction, Shen explained, “His attitude does speak volumes and he just doesn’t want to talk to us and he wants us to leave. He says it’s a private business and he says don’t harass our people. It’s like, there’s actually no one to harass. There was no one inside.”
After the visit, Alpha News has learned that the building now keeps the front doors locked.
Alpha News reached out to Gov. Walz about the businesses inside the building and the allegations that a CCP front is operating in St. Paul but received no response.
After the visit, Alpha News contacted the FBI but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
This article will be updated if we receive any response from Governor Walz or the FBI.
The original Breitbart News reports, Details Revealed: Inside the CCP’s United Front Work in Minnesota, can be found here: Part I and Part II.
