Chinese man pleads guilty in military technology sting

A 28-year- old Chinese man pleaded guilty on Wednesday of attempting to smuggle military technology obtained from undercover US agents out of the United States to China, the US Justice Department said.

Bo Cai, an employee of a Chinese technology firm, was accused along with his cousin Wentong Cai, 29, of trying to illegally export sensors primarily manufactured for sale to the US Department of Defense.

Wentong Cai, who was in the United States on a student visa, has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.

The US Arms Export Control Act and International Traffic in Arms Regulations prohibit the export of defense-related materials from the United States without a license or written approval from the US Department of State.

“This prosecution demonstrates the federal law enforcement community’s commitment to safeguarding our nation’s military secrets by keeping America’s critical technology from falling into the wrong hands,” a Justice Department statement quoted Damon P. Martinez, US Attorney for New Mexico, as saying.

The statement said that Bo Cai admitted enlisting Wentong Cai to acquire the sensors and that the cousin used the pretext that he would use them at Iowa State University, where he was a graduate microbiology student.

The two men were detained after obtaining a sensor from undercover US Homeland Security agents in New Mexico in December after negotiations by email and phone.

Bo Cai was arrested at an airport in Los Angeles in December as he was preparing to board a flight to China. The sensor was discovered concealed in a computer speaker in his luggage, the statement said. — Reuters