A Harvard professor and two Chinese nationals are now under federal investigation for suspected conspiracy against U.S. research and technology properties.
Harvard professor conspiring with China
Charles Lieber, chair of the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University, is under investigation for the suspected involvement in China’s Thousand Talents Plan. The professor is under strict monitoring and interrogation for his possible ties with the Chinese recruitment scheme.
China’s Thousand Talents Plan is a program intended to entice experts from foreign countries with high-level knowledge of technology and other intellectual properties of their country. Federal authorities fear the threat being employed by China in using academics and researchers as a means of infiltrating the country’s research and technology.
Since his arrest early Tuesday, Lieber remained in federal custody while waiting for his detention hearing, which is scheduled on Thursday. The prosecutor has given info about Lieber’s case. He is said to receive $50,000 a month as salary by the Wuhan University of Technology, with and additional living expenses of up to $158,000. Lieber was also granted $1.5 million for the construction of a research lab at the Wuhan University.
Two Chinese nationals stealing U.S. intel and biotech
A Chinese national, registered as a medical student, was caught trying to smuggle 21 vials of research specimens on his flight back to China. Zaosong Zheng was in the U.S. using a visa sponsored by Harvard. The vials confiscated from Zheng were stolen from a lab at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Another Chinese national named Yanqing Ye, a researcher at Boston University was charged with visa fraud, conspiracy, and possibly leaking of important U.S. documents to China.
Ye falsified her identity on her visa application by stating herself as a student and lying about being enlisted for military service in China. Upon detention, she admitted that she was a lieutenant with the People’s Liberation Army of China.
Court documents on Ye’s case also discussed her involvement in accessing U.S. military websites and sending delicate information to China.
According to the U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling,
These incidents are not mere coincidence. This is only a small group of Chinese nationals that has infiltrated U.S. soil to gather American research and technology for their countries gain.
In addition from Boston FBI agent Joseph Bonovolonta,
China’s communist government’s goals is to simply overtake U.S. as the world supoerpower, and they are breaking laws to get there.
Featured image by NPR
