Two Chinese nationals were charged in Michigan Tuesday with allegedly smuggling a dangerous pathogen into the United States, claiming it was for the purpose of studying at the University of Michigan.
United States Attorney Jerome Gorgon Jr. reports that Yunqing Juan, 33, and Zunyong Liu, 34, both citizens of communist China, were charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements, and visa fraud.
According to the complaint, Liu initially lied but later admitted to smuggling a dangerous fungus into America through the Detroit Metropolitan Airport so that he could conduct research with his girlfriend at a laboratory at the University of Michigan.
The fungus, called Fusarium graminearum is the most significant and destructive disease affecting wheat crops all over the world, according to the National Library of Medicine. The scientific literature classifies it as a potential biological weapon.
According to the FBI, the complaint reports Jian received Chinese government funding for her work on this pathogen in China. The complaint also alleges that Jian’s electronic devices contained information about her loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party. Jian’s boyfriend, Liu, researches the same pathogen at a Chinese University.
Gorgon, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, said in a press release:
“The alleged actions of these Chinese nationals, including a loyal member of the Chinese Communist Party, are of the gravest national security concerns. These two aliens have been charged with smuggling a fungus that has been described as a ‘potential agroterrorism weapon’ into the heartland of America, where they apparently intended to use a University of Michigan laboratory to further their scheme.”
He said the criminal charges against the two Chinese nationals are indicative of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s critical role in protecting the American people “from biological threats that could devastate our agricultural economy and cause harm to humans; especially when it involves a researcher from a major university attempting to clandestinely bring potentially harmful biological materials into the United States.”