Chinese researcher accused of smuggling dangerous biological pathogen into U.S. appears in court
A Chinese national accused of smuggling a "potential agroterrorism weapon" via a noxious fungus into the U.S. appeared in a federal courtroom in Detroit Thursday afternoon for a detention hearing.
Yunqing Jian, 33, of the People's Republic of China, appeared alongside a public defender, who asked Judge Kimberly Altman to postpone the detention hearing because Jian is in the process of retaining private counsel. Altman agreed to postpone the hearing until June 13 and ordered that Jian remain in custody until then.
Jian, along with her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, 34, are charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., false statements and visa fraud. Jian is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Officials allege that Liu, who works at a Chinese university where he conducts research on the same pathogen, first lied but later admitted to smuggling Fusarium graminearum through Detroit Metropolitan Airport so that he could conduct research on it at a laboratory at the University of Michigan, where Jian worked.
Scientific literature classifies Fusarium graminearum as a potential agroterrorism weapon.
Officials say the "noxious fungus causes 'head blight,' a disease of wheat, barley, maize, and rice, and is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year. Fusarium graminearum's toxins cause vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock."
Jian is accused of receiving funding from the Chinese government for her work on this pathogen in China. The FBI alleges that her electronics contain information describing her membership in and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party.
The FBI arrested Jain on Tuesday. Liu has since returned to China.
Javed Ali, a counter-terrorism expert at the University of Michigan, says that based on information from the criminal complaint, it doesn't appear that this was a legitimate attempt at research.
"The attempts to conceal the connection to the Chinese Communist Party with the female grad student, the multiple attempts to covertly bring in this pathogen, if that's the right way to describe it," Ali said. "The communications they were having for a couple years talking about different methods of concealment."
FBI Director Kash Patel called the case "a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences... putting American lives and our economy at serious risk."
The University of Michigan issued a statement Tuesday, saying officials "strongly condemn any actions that seek to cause harm, threaten national security or undermine the university's critical public mission. It is important to note that the university has received no funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals. We have and will continue to cooperate with federal law enforcement in its ongoing investigation and prosecution."
The FBI and U.S. Customs and Border Protection are handling the investigation.
