A Chinese medical researcher flew back to China after he was sentenced to the time he spent in U.S. custody.
Zheng Zaosong, 31, came to the United States on a J-1 visa in August 2018 and conducted cancer cell research at Harvard University’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. He was arrested on Dec. 10, 2019 at Boston’s Logan International Airport, where he was found with 21 vials containing biological materials in his luggage. He lied and answered “no” when asked by federal officers whether he was traveling with any biological items.
In December last year, he pleaded guilty to one count of making false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements to federal investigators. He admitted that he intended to use those vials to conduct research at his laboratory in China’s Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital and then publish findings under his own name.
As part of Zheng’s plea deal, U.S. prosecutors dropped a smuggling charge against him.
On Dec. 6, Zheng was sentenced to the time (about 87 days) he had spent in custody following his arrest, according to a press release from the Department of Justice (DOJ).
His lawyer Norman Zalkind confirmed in an email to The Epoch Times that his client flew back to China Wednesday night.
Efforts to steal U.S. intellectual property to benefit Beijing have been a major concern for U.S. officials in recent years. In October 2019, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned U.S. universities to be aware of China’s attempts to steal trade secrets via the researchers it recruited.
In November last year, Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) introduced a bill (H.R.8777) aimed at reforming the student visa application process to stop China’s theft.
Several U.S.-based researchers have also been prosecuted in criminal cases for attempting to steal or stealing trade secrets