A BRITISH businessman has been accused of spying and plotting to smuggle sensitive military technology to China.
The FBI claim investigators intercepted phone calls in which John Miller, 63, called Chinese leader Xi Jinping as “The Boss”.
The 63-year-old from Kent is also alleged to have tried to buy military hardware in the US for the People’s Liberation Army.
The items he tried to obtain consisted of missile launchers, air defense radars, and tiny Black Hornet drones that can get very close to enemy troops and even enter buildings to gather intelligence on their positions.
Additionally, he also tried to buy a handheld gadget authorized by the National Security Agency of the United States, designed for secure communication of confidential information.
Furthermore, Mr. Miller proposed sneaking this device by concealing it inside a food blender, so it could be shipped to Hong Kong via DHL or FedEx, as stated in documents from the US court.
The FBI said Mr Miller calling Xi “The Boss” showed his “awareness that he was acting at the direction and control of the [Chinese] government”.
He was arrested on April 24 after he was caught in a sting when the ‘arms dealers’ he was negotiating with turned out to be undercover FBI agents.
Mr Miller was on a business trip to Belgrade, Serbia, at the time and is still being held last night facing extradition to the US.
He is accused of conspiring with US-based Chinese national, Cui Guanghai, 43, and if convicted, both men face up to 40 years in prison.
Neighbours at his five-bedroom £1.5million home in Tunbridge Wells described him a “respectable family man”, according to the Mail on Sunday.
