NASA Chinese academics accused by U.S. Department of Justice of concealing participation in China’s Thousand Talents Plan and defrauding U.S. research grants
Zhengdong Cheng, a NASA researcher and an engineering professor at Texas A&M University, was taken into custody on Sunday (23/8) and formally charged on Monday (24/8) by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly concealing ties to Chinese companies and universities while receiving a federal grant.
The U.S. Department of Justice charged Cheng Zhengdong on conspiracy, making false statements and wire fraud. The indictment alleged that Cheng's research team received a funding of about US$750,000 for NASA's space research, but concealed his relationship with a Chinese university and at least one Chinese-owned company. Also, it alleged that Cheng knowingly provided false information to Texas A&M University and NASA.
The prosecution stated that NASA funding restriction has been in place to forbidding the collaboration or coordination with any Chinese-owned company or any Chinese University.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers said in a statement, "Once again, we have witnessed the criminal consequences that can arise from undisclosed participation in the Chinese government’s talent program". He further added, "The Department of Justice will continue seeking to bring participation in these talent programs to light and to expose the exploitation of our nation and our prized research institutions".
The U.S. Department of Justice has previously described China’s Thousand Talents Plan as a tool for the Chinese Communist Party to "attract, recruit, and cultivate high-level scientific talent in furtherance of China’s scientific development, economic prosperity and national security." He continued that the Chinese government would "often reward individuals for stealing proprietary information” through the program.
#Aug24
#CCP #DepartmentOfJustice #ThousandTalentsPlan #ZhengdongCheng #NASA #TexasAMUniversity #USResearchGrants #JohnDemers
(Note: the translation also takes summary if the following reports:
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/24/texas-am-professor-accused-of-collaborating-with-china-amid-nasa-work.html
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/nasa-researcher-arrested-false-statements-and-wire-fraud-relation-china-s-talents-program
https://apnews.com/58b0b752e2ab0b4b3e16e7c9f513e1a6
)
Zhengdong Cheng, a NASA researcher and an engineering professor at Texas A&M University, was taken into custody on Sunday (23/8) and formally charged on Monday (24/8) by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly concealing ties to Chinese companies and universities while receiving a federal grant.
The U.S. Department of Justice charged Cheng Zhengdong on conspiracy, making false statements and wire fraud. The indictment alleged that Cheng's research team received a funding of about US$750,000 for NASA's space research, but concealed his relationship with a Chinese university and at least one Chinese-owned company. Also, it alleged that Cheng knowingly provided false information to Texas A&M University and NASA.
The prosecution stated that NASA funding restriction has been in place to forbidding the collaboration or coordination with any Chinese-owned company or any Chinese University.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers said in a statement, "Once again, we have witnessed the criminal consequences that can arise from undisclosed participation in the Chinese government’s talent program". He further added, "The Department of Justice will continue seeking to bring participation in these talent programs to light and to expose the exploitation of our nation and our prized research institutions".
The U.S. Department of Justice has previously described China’s Thousand Talents Plan as a tool for the Chinese Communist Party to "attract, recruit, and cultivate high-level scientific talent in furtherance of China’s scientific development, economic prosperity and national security." He continued that the Chinese government would "often reward individuals for stealing proprietary information” through the program.
#Aug24
#CCP #DepartmentOfJustice #ThousandTalentsPlan #ZhengdongCheng #NASA #TexasAMUniversity #USResearchGrants #JohnDemers
(Note: the translation also takes summary if the following reports:
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/24/texas-am-professor-accused-of-collaborating-with-china-amid-nasa-work.html
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/nasa-researcher-arrested-false-statements-and-wire-fraud-relation-china-s-talents-program
https://apnews.com/58b0b752e2ab0b4b3e16e7c9f513e1a6
)
CNBC
Texas A&M professor accused of secretly collaborating with China amid NASA work
According to the criminal complaint, Zhengdong Cheng, 53, a professor in the College of Engineering at Texas A&M and a NASA researcher, obscured his affiliations with the Chinese government.
Two more Chinese researchers in the U.S. arrested and charged with theft of trade secrets and destruction of evidence to hinder an investigation.
Following the indictment last week of a Chinese professor at Texas A&M University, also a NASA researcher, for allegedly covering up his dealings with Chinese universities and companies, two more Chinese academics in the U.S. have been arrested. A researcher from the University of Virginia (UVA), Haizhou HU, has been charged with obtaining information from protected computers and stealing trade secrets. Another researcher from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Lei GUAN, has been arrested on suspicion of destroying evidence to obstruct an FBI investigation.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Hu was arrested yesterday (August 28) at the University of Virginia, at where he had conducted research in bio-mimics and fluid dynamics. He attempted to board a flight to China at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport four days before his arrest. However, during a route check at the airport, he was found to be in unauthorized possession of the source code of the biomimicry software, which had been the subject of years of research by University of Virginia personnel. Hu has been accused of obtaining information from a protected computer without authorization or exceeding authority and stealing trade secrets.
In the light of another press release of the U.S. Department of Justice, Guan was denied boarding a flight to China after he disposed of a damaged computer hard drive in a trash bin outside his home on Tuesday (25 August). The FBI's subsequent attempts to recover the drive were unsuccessful, the data was forcibly removed, and Guan was charged with destroying evidence to impede an FBI investigation. He had already been investigated for transferring sensitive U.S. software and technical information to China's National University of Defense Technology (NUDT), where he lied about having nothing to do with the PLA before admitting to having received training from NUDT and wearing its uniform.
The Chinese-American professor at Texas A&M University, Zhengdong Cheng, also a NASA researcher, was arrested last Sunday (23 August) and a hearing was arranged next day on charges of conspiracy, making false statements and wire fraud for allegedly deliberately concealing his involvement with a Chinese university and at least one Chinese company.
Source: Standnews #Aug29
#ChineseSpies #UVA #UCLA #TexasAMUniversity #NASA #Chigaco #NUDT #ThousandTalentsProject
Following the indictment last week of a Chinese professor at Texas A&M University, also a NASA researcher, for allegedly covering up his dealings with Chinese universities and companies, two more Chinese academics in the U.S. have been arrested. A researcher from the University of Virginia (UVA), Haizhou HU, has been charged with obtaining information from protected computers and stealing trade secrets. Another researcher from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Lei GUAN, has been arrested on suspicion of destroying evidence to obstruct an FBI investigation.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Hu was arrested yesterday (August 28) at the University of Virginia, at where he had conducted research in bio-mimics and fluid dynamics. He attempted to board a flight to China at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport four days before his arrest. However, during a route check at the airport, he was found to be in unauthorized possession of the source code of the biomimicry software, which had been the subject of years of research by University of Virginia personnel. Hu has been accused of obtaining information from a protected computer without authorization or exceeding authority and stealing trade secrets.
In the light of another press release of the U.S. Department of Justice, Guan was denied boarding a flight to China after he disposed of a damaged computer hard drive in a trash bin outside his home on Tuesday (25 August). The FBI's subsequent attempts to recover the drive were unsuccessful, the data was forcibly removed, and Guan was charged with destroying evidence to impede an FBI investigation. He had already been investigated for transferring sensitive U.S. software and technical information to China's National University of Defense Technology (NUDT), where he lied about having nothing to do with the PLA before admitting to having received training from NUDT and wearing its uniform.
The Chinese-American professor at Texas A&M University, Zhengdong Cheng, also a NASA researcher, was arrested last Sunday (23 August) and a hearing was arranged next day on charges of conspiracy, making false statements and wire fraud for allegedly deliberately concealing his involvement with a Chinese university and at least one Chinese company.
Source: Standnews #Aug29
#ChineseSpies #UVA #UCLA #TexasAMUniversity #NASA #Chigaco #NUDT #ThousandTalentsProject