Two Agricultural Scientists from China Charged with Stealing Trade Secrets
KANSAS CITY, KS—Two agricultural scientists from China have been charged with trying to steal samples of a variety of seeds from a biopharmaceutical company’s research facility in Kansas, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today. Weiqiang Zhang, 47, Manhattan, Kansas, and Wengui Yan, 63, Stuttgart, Arkansas, are charged with one count of conspiracy to steal trade secrets. The victim in the case—identified in court records as Company A—has invested approximately $75 million in patented technology used to create a variety of seeds containing recombinant proteins. The company has an extensive intellectual property portfolio of more than 100 issued and pending patents and exclusive licenses to issued patents. Zhang and Yan are charged in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kansas. An affidavit in support of the complaint alleges that on August 7, 2013, agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection found stolen seeds in the luggage of a group of visitors from China preparing to board a plane to return home. While in the United States, the group had visited various agricultural facilities and universities in the Midwest, as well as the Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center in Stuggart, Arkansas. According to the complaint:
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct. |
欢迎光临 eNewsTree.com (https://www.enewstree.com/discuz/) | Powered by Discuz! X3.2 |