Federal prosecutors have appealed the high-profile release of a former RCMP officer accused of helping China carry out foreign interference in Canada.
A notice of appeal filed late last week asked the BC Court of Appeal to overturn the May 13 not guilty verdict and order a new trial for William Majcher.
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada argued that the judge erred when she denied the charge that Majcher was effectively an agent of the Chinese government.
The Crown’s motion, obtained by Global News, argues that the judge did not consider all the evidence, misjudged it and excluded expert evidence.
Ian Donaldson, Majcher’s criminal defense lawyer, confirmed that the appeal had been lodged on Thursday. The prosecution did not respond to emailed questions.
Majcher said in a statement to Global News on Sunday that the decision to appeal the case “seems disconnected from both the evidence and the court’s findings.”
“The decision confirmed what I have maintained from the beginning: I committed no offense – period! The prosecution’s theory against me was rejected by the Supreme Court of British Columbia after a thorough review of the facts,” he said.
The civil attorney representing Majcher said the public had a right to question why the case was continuing given that the judge found the evidence lacking.
“From our perspective, the appeal appears to lack substantial merit and risks becoming an exercise in institutional self-preservation rather than the pursuit of justice,” Joel Etienne said.
Get daily national news
Get Canada’s daily news delivered to your inbox so you never miss the top news of the day.
“The harm caused to Mr. Majcher, his family and his businesses cannot simply be ignored while the process continues.”
In an exclusive interview with Global News to be published on Tuesday, Majcher responds in detail for the first time to the Canadian investigation that targeted him.
Majcher is one of the few Canada has prosecuted over allegations of Chinese interference, despite Beijing’s alleged meddling in everything from the elections THE arts.
But the case became the last one that ended without a conviction, after the release of a Canadian Space Agency employee and a federal contractor who faced similar charges.
After leaving the RCMP in 2007, Majcher moved to Hong Kong to work in banking and private security. He was arrested after landing at Vancouver airport in 2023.
The RCMP said in a news release at the time that its Integrated Homeland Security Enforcement Team had launched an investigation into Majcher in 2021.
The statement accused him of using his knowledge and contacts in Canada “to obtain intelligence or services for the benefit of the People’s Republic of China.”
He also “contributed to the Chinese government’s efforts to identify and intimidate an individual outside the scope of Canadian law,” the RCMP alleged.
The arrest came in the middle of a series Global News and the Globe and Mail reports on the government’s inaction on Beijing’s interference in Canada’s political and domestic affairs.
But when Majcher’s trial began in April, the case had been narrowed to a single count under the Information Security Act, based on an email exchange.
The Crown claimed the messages concerned Kevin Sun, a Vancouver resident whom China had accused of fleeing the country with tens of millions of dollars.
Although prosecutors charged Majcher with a 2017 conspiracy to pressure Sun to return to China to settle the case, the judge said the Crown had not proven its case.
Majcher’s business, which focused on economic crime and asset recovery services, appeared to be pursuing “entirely legitimate objectives”, the judge said.
The ruling found that the Crown’s evidence was “entirely circumstantial” and it was “merely a big step” to conclude that Majcher committed any crime.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service wrote in it May 1 Annual Report that China remains one of the “primary perpetrators of foreign interference and espionage against Canada.”
But Prime Minister Mark Carney has deepened Canada’s ties with Beijing since taking office, as he seeks new trading partners to offset an erratic and hostile US White House.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
