Xiang Haitao, a Chinese national was sentenced to 29 months in US prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to steal trade secrets.
Chinese national arrested for stealing trade secrets
Xiang, Haitao, a 44-year-old was employed by the agricultural company Monsanto between 2008 and 2017. However, he pleaded guilty in January. Haitao was conspiring to steal trade secrets from the firm. It was also benefitting the Chinese government according to the US Justice Department. He pleaded guilty in Missouri federal court to conspiracy to commit economic espionage. Moreover, on Thursday the Chinese national was sentenced to 29 months in a US prison. Following the jail sentence is a three-year-long supervised release. Haitao also has a hefty fine of $150,000.
“Xiang conspired to steal an important trade secret to gain an unfair advantage for himself and the PRC (People’s Republic of China),” stated Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen. Assistant Attorney General Olsen is from the US Justice Department’s National Security Division.
More on the crime
Federal officials found him guilty of possessing copies of a proprietary predictive algorithm, developed by the agriculture company. Additionally, as per the Justice Department, he was waiting to board the flight to China in June 2017. He flew to China and was working for the Chinese Academy of Science’s Institute of Soil Science. Authorities arrested him upon returning to the US in November 2019.
“Economic espionage is a serious offense that can threaten U.S. companies’ competitive advantage. And the National Security Division committed to holding accountable anyone who steals trade secrets to benefit a foreign government,” added Olsen.