A professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was arrested Thursday at his Cambridge, Mass. home and charged with grant fraud after allegedly working for China’s technology collection program in secret.
Gang Chen, 56, accepted payments from the Chinese government and failed to disclose those payments to the Energy Department, a requirement with federal government contracts, a statement from the Department of Justice read.
A naturalized U.S. citizen from China, Mr. Chen is director of MIT’s Pappalardo Micro/Nano Engineering Laboratory and the institute’s Solid-State Solar Thermal Energy Conversion Center. Nano-technology and solar power technology are targets for the Chinese government’s foreign collection efforts.
“Since approximately 2013, Chen’s research at MIT has been funded by more than $19 million in grants awarded by various U.S. federal agencies,” the Justice Department said.
Gang Chen has also been a talent scout for Chinese recruiters, even recommending a number of students to participate in gathering technology for the Communist country.
According to federal prosecutors, Mr. Chen has worked for the Chinese government as an “overseas expert” since 2012, specifically involved in activities…
Read the full story here: MIT professor secretly worked for China, DOJ says – here’s what he did | American Military NewsAmerican Military News