Two Chinese nationals are accused of smuggling a “potential agroterrorism weapon” via a noxious fungus into the mid-western US.
Two citizens from China, Yunqing Jian, aged 33, and Zunyong Liu, aged 34, have been accused in a criminal complaint of various charges including conspiracy, smuggling goods into the US, false statements, and visa fraud, as per officials’ announcement today.
It is the second time in a week that a Chinese national with ties to the University of Michigan has been charged in a federal investigation.
The harmful fungus they are linked to is known to cause ‘head blight,’ a disease affecting wheat, barley, maize, and rice, resulting in significant economic losses globally every year amounting to billions of dollars. The toxins of Fusarium graminearum lead to symptoms like vomiting, liver issues, and reproductive abnormalities in both humans and animals.
According to the complaint, Jian received Chinese government funding for her work on this pathogen in China.
The complaint also alleges that Jian’s electronics contain information describing her membership in and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party.
Additionally, it is claimed that Liu, who is Jian’s partner, is employed at a Chinese university where he is involved in researching the same pathogen. Initially, he denied it but later confessed to smuggling Fusarium graminearum through Detroit Metropolitan Airport. His intention was to use it for research purposes at the University of Michigan laboratory, where Jian was also employed.
Jian was scheduled to appear on today in the federal court in Detroit.
CBS News Detroit has reached out to the University of Michigan for comment.
