Posted on 02/26/2026 9:13:42 PM PST by dennisw
Yunqing Jian, 33, first entered the country on a fraudulently obtained F1 student visa, the FBI says
Fusarium graminearum creates "head blight," a disease of wheat, barley, maize and rice, and "is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year," according to the Department of Justice.
It is also toxic to humans, and can cause vomiting, liver damage and "reproductive defects in humans and livestock."
The affidavit, which said Jian has been attempting to smuggle the pathogen into the U.S. since she began post-doctoral studies funded by China in 2022, also accuses Jian of asking a third party to send her Fusarium graminearum in January 2024.
"There are usually no problems," Jian said in a message to the third person. "Rest assured. I have mailed these before."
That third person allegedly shipped the package, and hid the samples in a statistics textbook. The package was intercepted before it arrived.
One of the two Chinese nationals arrested for allegedly smuggling a toxic crop-killing pathogen, which also has devastating health effects on humans, stuffed the noxious fungus into her boots while entering the U.S. in 2022, documents show.
According to an arrest affidavit for University of Michigan post-doctoral research fellow Yunqing Jian and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, Jian first brought Fusarium graminearum, described as a "potential agroterrorism weapon" in scientific literature, in August 2022.
A transcribed WeChat conversation between Jian and Liu shows Liu instructing Jian on how to smuggle the fungus, according to the affidavit.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
Bring this wheat crops (other crops too) destroying fungus into the USA. Culture this fungus until you get a few gallons. This is very easy for a post doctoral student. I hope they are in prison awaiting trial.
When you get a few gallons spread it across a few US states. Iowa would be a good place to start.
No, Yunqing Jian is not in prison. She pleaded guilty in November 2025 to charges of smuggling the biological pathogen (Fusarium graminearum) into the U.S. and making false statements to the FBI. She was sentenced to time served (approximately five months she had already spent in custody since her June 2025 arrest) and was expected to be quickly deported back to China shortly after the sentencing.
This outcome came from a plea agreement, where prosecutors noted they could not prove ill intent (e.g., bioterrorism motives), though they highlighted the potential risks and initially sought a longer sentence. The case was described in some reports as unusual, involving an accomplished researcher who claimed the smuggling was to accelerate legitimate crop protection research.
Her co-defendant/boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, appears to have been deported earlier (he was caught at the airport and admitted to smuggling but was sent back to China without prolonged U.S. detention in some accounts), while other related cases involving Chinese researchers at the University of Michigan saw charges dropped amid reports of Chinese government intervention.
No recent updates (as of early 2026) indicate further trials, appeals, or imprisonment for Jian—she’s no longer in the U.S. system. The “bioterrorist” framing from initial headlines (like the Fox News article) was sensationalized; official DOJ statements focused on smuggling violations without proving agroterrorism intent.
Give her the Mary Surratt treatment.
These boots are made for bioterror,🎼🎵🎶
that’s just what they’ll do.
One of the these days these boots
are gonna kill millions of you. 👿🥾🥾⚰️🪦⚰️🪦
A Michigan terror case MUCH too close to me once again.
I hate those creepy self congratulatory terrorist couples like the Weatherman bomb types in the Bill Ayres days. Reinforce each other's psychoses and enable each other.
These people should have a torture penalty.
Great post. Thank you.
Perp let go. Not in prison now.
The misinformation in journalism now is incredible.
And for every bioterrorist caught how many others slipped through?
fk that Schiff !
They should both be in Federal prison for at least 40 years ..
fk that Schiff !
They should both be in Federal prison for at least 40 years ..
If we were a serious country they would be in prison, for a very long time. But they aren’t, because we aren’t.
How many more haven’t we caught?
One firing squad event for bioterrorism presumed attack on our country would end this. No more educational, scientific warfare.
“The “bioterrorist” framing from initial headlines (like the Fox News article) was sensationalized”
Typical AI bullshit if learned from the vast leftist content on the web.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.