B.C. resident denied bail in U.S. spy case
VANCOUVER — A Chinese citizen accused by U.S. authorities in a sophisticated hacking scheme to steal military secrets will remain jailed in Canada after a British Columbia judge declared the man posed a significant flight risk.
Calling the allegations “disturbing,” B.C. Supreme Court Justice Austin Cullen refused bail for Su Bin, a businessman appealing the revocation of his permanent residency in Canada as he faces extradi- tion to the United States.
“It appears that his connection to Canada is mainly that it is a base for his wife and children,” Cullen said Wednesday when delivering his decision from the bench. “His own presence in Canada is more illusory than real.”
Cullen listed reasons in denying the man’s release, including the vast amount of time Su spends in China, the fact his business is based there and that he appears to have undisclosed assets outside of Canada. The judge also cited the serious allegations in the U.S. and the man’s international connections.
“In my view, those factors taken in combination raise a significant risk that Mr. Su, if released, will abscond rather than face the prospect of extradition to the United States based on these charges.”
The FBI alleges that Su was the mastermind of a plot to electronically steal information from Boeing, a U.S. military contractor, as well as other defence contractors, and sell it to companies in China.
Su was arrested by RCMP on June 28. As he was escorted from the courtroom on Wednesday, he waved to his wife and her translator.
The court heard Su owns a home worth $1.8 million in Vancouver, with an outstanding mortgage of $1.2 million, and offered only his wife as surety for bail. He listed other support coming from a friend from West Vancouver, his son’s piano teacher, and a former neighbour in Vernon. His two children were born in Canada.
Su’s next court appearance in the extradition case is Aug. 27.