A pair of Chinese researchers have been charged for allegedly smuggling a biological pathogen into the US to study at the University of Michigan, according to federal authorities.
Yunqing Jian, 33, and Zunyong Liu, 34, have been charged with with conspiracy, smuggling, making false statements and visa fraud after authorities found that Liu entered the country last year with a toxic fungus stashed in his backpack.
Liu attempted to smuggle the pathogen through Detroit airport so he could study it at the University of Michigan laboratory where his girlfriend, Jian, worked, the complaint said.
The FBI said the pathogen, known as Fusarium graminearum, is a ‘potential agroterrorism weapon,’ according to a scientific journal.
The pathogen can attack wheat, barley, maize and rice and sicken livestock and people, the FBI said in a court filing in Detroit Tuesday.
‘The alleged actions of these Chinese nationals, including a loyal member of the Chinese Communist Party, are of the gravest national security concerns,’ US Attorney Jerome Gorgon Jr. said.
A pair of Chinese researchers have been charged in Michigan for allegedly smuggling biological pathogen (pictured) into the US to study at the University of Michigan
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.