Home » News » Charles Lieber | The famous Harvard scientist arrested in the US for “working” for China Science

Charles Lieber | The famous Harvard scientist arrested in the US for “working” for China Science

US prosecutors accused a senior academic from Harvard University to hide his alleged role in a Chinese government program which according to security officials steals trade secrets.

The arrest on Tuesday of the American Charles Lieber, the director of the department of chemistry and chemical biology at Harvard, specialized in nanoscience, is the latest development in a long saga for alleged intellectual property theft.

US justice investigates hundreds of cases of alleged robbery by Chinese scientists working in the United States or they are visiting the country.

Two other scientists, both ChineseThey were also indicted on Tuesday, the Justice Department said in a statement.

One is a science student from Boston University that prosecutors said he did not inform the US immigration authorities that he was also a member of the Chinese armed forces, the People’s Liberation Army.

The other is a cancer researcher accused of trying to remove 21 vials containing biological investigations from the United States. He was arrested at the Boston airport on December 30.

The arrest of Lieber, 60, is unusual because it is not of Chinese origin and He is a prominent figure in one of the most respected universities in the world.

For its part, Harvard has described in a statement the charges of “extremely serious.” “Harvard is cooperating with federal authorities, including the National Institutes of Health, and is conducting its own review of the alleged misconduct. […] Professor Lieber has been placed on an indefinite administrative license. ”

Prosecutors say that China used Lieber as a “strategic scientist” and he paid him a salary of $ 50,000 per month, as well as up to $ 158,000 per year in expenses. They also say that he received more than 1.5 million dollars to install a laboratory at Wuhan University of Technology.

They ensure that Lieber lied twice about his affiliation with Wuhan University and said he was not involved in the Thousand Talent Plan of the Chinese government. As a recipient of more than $ 15 million in government research funds, Lieber had to report any eventual foreign financial conflict of interest, including financial support from governments or foreign entities.

The Thousand Talent program seeks to recruit international experts in scientific investigation, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.

But the US government has described it as A threat to national security.

“This is a small sample of China’s ongoing campaign to absorb knowledge and American technology for their own benefit, ”Massachusetts State Attorney Andrew Lelling told reporters.

AFP / CNN

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