Prosecutors say S.F. consulate is harboring Chinese military researcher wanted by FBI – AXIOS
|Further to the previous article, US President Trump: Possible he could close more Chinese diplomatic sites, AXIOS has reported on a researcher who lied about her affiliation with a Chinese military university, charged with visa fraud and now Tang appears to have taken refuge inside the San Francisco consulate.
Using a diplomatic facility to shelter someone charged with a federal crime could cause serious tension between the US and China, especially as the US is seeking to crack down on Chinese espionage and research theft,
AXIOS reported.
Lead paragraphs
A researcher who lied about her affiliation with a Chinese military university entered the Chinese consulate in San Francisco after being interviewed by the FBI on June 20 about alleged visa fraud and has remained there, according to an FBI assessment in court filings dated July 20.
"It is highly unusual for a Chinese diplomatic post to associate so closely with a suspect in an intellectual property theft-related case," said Minyao Wang, a New York-based lawyer who has worked on IP theft cases related to China.
- "Sheltering a defendant in a criminal case by using the diplomatic immunity of a consular building, if true, is really extraordinary."
Details
According to documents filed on July 20 in the San Francisco division of the U.S. district court for the Northern District of California, Tang Juan came to the U.S. on a J-1 visa and was a researcher at the University of California, Davis.
- On her visa application, Tang stated that she did not have any affiliation with the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the Chinese military.
- But an investigation revealed that she worked at the Air Force Military Medical University (FMMU), a PLA-affiliated university in China, and she is considered to be active military personnel.
- After obtaining a warrant, the FBI searched her home and found evidence of her affiliation with the PLA.
- On June 26, Tang was charged with visa fraud.
AXIOS also reports that Federal prosecutors believe this isn't an isolated case.
- Tang's case is listed among several similar recent ones that appear "to be part of a program conducted by the PLA — and specifically, FMMU or associated institutions—to send military scientists to the United States on false pretenses with false covers or false statements about their true employment," the court filing states.
- At least one among this group of cases involved a military scientist who had allegedly been directed by military superiors to steal information from a US institution.
- In other cases, the Chinese government directed military scientists to destroy evidence, and had helped them leave the US, according to court filings.
Market implications
It will be a tense immediate future in geopolitics for financial markets to grapple with.
Further provocation from either side at this juncture stand a good chance to set off a risk-off tone in markets, potentially weighing on equities.
Gold stands to be the least concerned for it benefits either way.
However, a sharp recovery in the US dollar would likely put at least a temporary brake on the yellow metal.
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