Chinese police hunting international corruption targets were allowed into Australia by the federal police and subsequently escorted a woman back to China for trial, in a major breach of Chinese-Australian police protocols.

The revelations, contained in Monday night’s Four Corners program about a former Chinese spy, prompted a sharp rebuke from federal politicians who are concerned the act may have undermined Australia’s national security.

The Chinese police were permitted to enter Australia in 2019 to talk with a 59-year-old Chinese-born Australian resident.

The woman was targeted under a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) anti-corruption drive called Operation Fox Hunt, which relies on police from the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) to make arrests.

Her case is one of 283 cases documented by an international NGO, Safeguard Defenders, in its recent report, Chasing Fox Hunt.

While Fox Hunt is described by the CCP as targeting “economic criminals”, human rights groups have said it is also used to silence dissidents and abduct people around the world.