A lawyer representing one of three alleged Chinese spies has said the Australian Federal Police (AFP) have "mishandled" the case amid further court delays.
The case against alleged spies, Siru Zheng, 31, a 25-year-old man, and another woman, 37, was mentioned in the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday, August 5.
The three people, two of whom cannot be named due to suppression orders, have previously indicated not guilty pleas to reckless foreign interference charges.
A 56-page redacted court document outlines the allegations against the Chinese nationals who are accused of spying on a Buddhist organisation for the Chinese government.
Police allege the suspected spies worked together under the direction of a public security bureau in China, to covertly gather information about the Canberra branch of Guan Yin Citta.
The Buddhist group is banned in China and the Chinese government views it as a threat to its regime.
In court, the prosecutor sought an eight-week adjournment, citing the complex nature of the matter and the significant size of the brief.
He said the additional time was needed to review and finalise the charges and obtain any necessary consent from the Attorney-General before they can proceed with the case.
Zheng's lawyer Travis Jackson said the prosecution had been candid about the work it needed to complete before progressing the matter, and he could not legally oppose the adjournment application.
However, he said it was "unfortunate that effectively the wheels of justice have been delayed by the ineptitude of the AFP".
Mr Jackson said one of the co-accused had been before the court for more than a year, as he made a costs application for his client over the adjournment.
"Because of the way in which the AFP have handled, or I say mishandled completely, this matter, it has caused further costs to be incurred."
Mr Jackson acknowledged the case involved a complex brief, comprising about 43 terabytes of hard drive material, but argued the AFP had "more than enough time" to finalise the evidence.
He said his client's alleged conduct ended in June 2022, followed by a three-year delay before the first arrest was made in July 2025.
Magistrate James Lawton granted the adjournment and awarded costs to Zheng over the delay.
The case will return to court in September.
