US Charges Chinese and Russian Nationals for Theft of Trade Secrets and Violation of Sanctions

The United States recently announced charges against several Chinese and Russian nationals for stealing trade secrets and violating sanctions. The Justice Department’s “Disruptive Technology Strike Force” brought the indictments. Among those charged is a former software engineer at Apple who allegedly stole software related to self-driving cars. Another Chinese national was accused of trying to provide Iran with materials used to produce weapons of mass destruction.

Procurement Networks for Russian Intelligence Services

The indictments also involved the dismantling of alleged procurement networks that helped Russia’s intelligence services obtain sensitive US military technology and aircraft parts. The US officials said that two Russian nationals were arrested in Arizona for trying to export civilian aircraft parts to Russia illegally.

Charges in California

Weibao Wang, a Chinese software engineer who worked for Apple from 2016 to 2018, was charged with stealing self-driving car technology and other trade secrets from the company. He fled to China just hours after a search of his home in 2018.

Smuggling Military and Dual Use Technology to Russia

A Greek national, Nikolaos Bogonikolos, who was arrested in France, was charged with smuggling military and dual use technology to Russia. He is accused of helping to fuel Russia’s war effort and their development of next-generation weapons. Bogonikolos, who headed a company known as the Aratos Group, “conspired with a network of companies orchestrated by the Russian intelligence services to fraudulently acquire and then smuggle US-origin military and dual use technologies to aid the Russian defense and security sectors,” according to Breon Peace, US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

In conclusion, the US is vigilant in enforcing its laws to prevent sensitive technologies from flowing to foreign adversaries. The charges brought by the Justice Department’s “Disruptive Technology Strike Force” serve as a warning to those who seek to violate US sanctions and steal trade secrets.