I read a novel a year or two ago with exactly that premise. There was also a Tesla-based movie a couple years ago with the premise. Great stories both.
MM (in TX)
I saw a sci fi flick a few years back that went into it. An alien race refused to give us the technology outright because our compassion would prevent us from destroying the original person. Instead they did the teleporting for us to be sure the original was destroyed.
Was it The Prestige?
Yes, The Prestige with Hugh Jackman. I thought it was just about competing magicians, but it turned out to be a cool sci-fi movie and the moral implications were very evident in this movie.