Gal was arrested in Cyprus on February 17, 2023 on an Interpol-issued warrant on suspicion of weapons trafficking. After posting bail he fled the country and went into hiding. On July 10, the Justice Department unsealed an indictment accusing Luft of various charges including acting as an unregistered agent of the Chinese government under the Foreign Agents Registration Act and violating trade sanctions against Iran. Among the indictment's allegations is that Luft, at the behest of the Chinese government, convinced an unnamed adviser to then-president-elect Donald Trump to adopt pro-Chinese positions.