Third Chinese scientist arrested after smuggling ‘biological pathogens' into US from Wuhan after ‘agroterrorism' probe
It is the second such case within a matter of days after a University of Michigan researcher and her boyfriend were charged for allegedly bringing a toxic fungus into the country.
5
5
5
In the latest case, Han Chengxuan was arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Sunday.
Cops claim she sent four packages from China to the States that contained "biological material related to round worms".
These packages were sent to people linked to the University of Michigan lab between September 2024 and March 2025.
Han has been charged with smuggling goods into the United States.
She initially denied sending the parcels at all, court documents claim.
Han would then insist they contained plastic cups rather the petri dishes before ultimately admitting to sending the samples, the documents add.
They had reportedly been collected during her PhD research in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
FBI Director Kash Patel posted on X: "Han is alleged to have sent four packages to the U.S. from China containing a biological material related to round worms — addressed to individuals associated with a lab at the University of Michigan.
"Upon arriving at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on June 8, Han allegedly made false statements to federal officials regarding the packages she had previously mailed — and had erased her electronic device just days prior.
"In a follow up interview with FBI and ICE HSI agents, Han admitted to sending the packages and lying about their contents.
China floods sea bases with nuke bombers, terrifying satellite pics show - as US warns Xi could SEIZE Taiwanese islands
"This case is part of a broader effort from the FBI and our federal partners to heavily crack down on similar pathogeon smuggling operations, as the CCP works relentlessly to undermine America's research institutions."
It comes after two other Chinese scientists were charged last week for allegedly trying to smuggle a toxic fungus into the States.
Researchers Jian Yunqing, 33, and Liu Zunyong, 34 are facing charges of smuggling goods, conspiracy, visa fraud and providing false statements.
They are alleged to have tried to bring Fusarium graminearum into the country - which can cause severe damage to livestock and crops.
5
5
Authorities claim the fungus could be used as a "potential agroterrorism weapon".
Prosecutors say Liu attempted to smuggle it through Detroit Airport so it could be studied at a University of Michigan laboratory.
Jian, who is Liu's girlfriend, worked at the lab according to prosecutors.
The university did not have the necessary federal permits to handle this pathogen.
A statement from the university says the institution has not had "funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals".
Officials further allege that Jian is a Chinese Communist Party member, and that her research on the fungus in China got Chinese government funding.
Liu allegedly lied about trying to bring the pathogen into the country in July 2024 before later admitting it.
While Jian has been arrested in the US, Liu was sent back to China at the airport - so his arrest is unlikely unless he returns.
Following Jian's arrest, FBI Director Kash Patel posted on X: "This case is a sobering reminder that the CCP is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences... putting American lives and our economy at serious risk."
Who are Jian Yunqing and Liu Zunyong?
Jian Yunqing and Liu Zunyong are alleged to have smuggled a toxic fungus into the United States.
Prosecutors claim Liu had attempted to bring the pathogen into the country through Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
Officials claim the intention was to smuggle the fungus in to be studied at a University of Michigan lab - where Liu's girlfriend Jian worked.
It is further alleged that Jian received Chinese government funding for her research on the fungus in China.
She has since been arrested, but Liu's detention is unlikely unless he returns to the States as there is no extradition agreement between the US and China.
According to the FBI, Fusarium graminearum is a "potential agroterrorism weapon" that can cause vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
25 minutes ago
- The Independent
Families and MAGA-world outraged after school district suspends boys for bullying transgender student
Parents, MAGA-world and the Virginia Attorney General are fuming after two students were suspended after they said they were 'uncomfortable' with a transgender student in the boys' locker room. The boys were suspended for ten days from Stone Bridge High School after a student, who was born female but identifies as a boy, filmed the boys expressing discomfort when he entered the boys' locker room, 7News first reported. The incident occurred in March, but the video was made public in May. The school district — Loudoun County Public Schools — launched a Title IX investigation, finding the boys responsible for sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination, a lawyer representing them told the outlet. 'There's a girl in here?' one boy asks in the video, prompting another to chime in: 'Why is there a girl? I'm so uncomfortable there is a girl.' A boy then insists the student leave. Parents and state officials alike are outraged over the suspension and spoke to the press about their concerns. Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears attended the news conference and told the crowd: 'It is time for the insanity to stop. It is time for everyone to recognize what is settled truth: girls are girls and boys are boys.' Parents of the suspended students have seethed at the investigation and subsequent suspensions. "I would say the first reaction was some anger, because we're just really concerned with all this stuff," Seth Wolfe, one of the parents, told 7News this week. He added he was "saddened by the decision-making process and how that went." Renae Smith, another parent, similarly said she was "absolutely floored that they came back and branded my son responsible for sexual harassment and sex based discrimination with no solid evidence whatsoever." The parent told the outlet: "We're talking about scarring him for life by a biased process that's supposed to protect fairness, but it's shocking. It's wrong, and it should terrify every single parent." Both parents voiced their concerns about the school district's contentious Policy 8040: Rights of Transgender and Gender-Expansive Students, which the school board approved in 2021. The policy addresses locker rooms, stating: "Students should be allowed to use the facility that corresponds to their consistently asserted gender identity." A spokesperson for the school district told The Independent in a statement that it does not publicly discuss private student matters, but noted: "At no time would LCPS suspend a student simply because they expressed some kind of discomfort. A reading of our Title IX resources should make it clear that there is a high bar to launch a Title IX investigation and an even higher bar to determine a student is in violation of Title IX." State and federal officials have joined Republican commentators in denouncing the school district's move. "This is very wrong — and it WILL NOT STAND !" Harmeet Dhillon, the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice, wrote on her personal X account Monday. Attorney and conservative commentator Marina Medvin similarly bashed: "Virginia: Loudoun County Public School punished two boys for voicing their discomfort with having a girl use the boys' locker room and video record them on her phone, suspending them at the start of the new school year." Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares told Fox5 in June that he referred the school district to federal authorities. "What we have found is Loudoun County Public Schools have both bad policy and bad judgment," he said. Miyares said the school improperly targeted the boys not for misconduct, but for wanting the student to leave the locker room because they felt uncomfortable. "This would have never been even debatable 15 years ago. If I had told you we'd be even having this discussion, you would have thought it was from another planet,' he continued. 'Right now these three boys, just for voicing common sense, are now the victim of the full-weight, possible expulsion, just because they voiced their concerns." The majority of the two-minute video shows a black screen, as the phone is seemingly in the transgender student's pocket. The student then points the camera at the boys, who are fully clothed, for the last 20 seconds after they express their discomfort. The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office was considering charges against the student who filmed the boys. Since the boys in the video 'were not in a state of undress or in any other situation that would've been an explicit violation of law, there was no potential charge,' a sheriff's office spokesperson told The Independent. Virginia state Delegate Terry Kilgore, a Republican, also bashed the school district's decision. "Calling a biological girl a girl isn't harassment. Neither is speaking up when a girl walks into the boys' locker room,' he said in a statement Wednesday. "Yet the far-left leadership of Loudoun County Public Schools tried to brand these three young men as harassers — and suspend them for 10 days - for doing exactly that. That's not just wrong, It's an injustice committed in the name of radical ideology.'
Daily Mail
26 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Female TikTok star ends up in jail after filming herself running onto baseball field: 'Intrusive thoughts got the better of me'
A TikToker ended up in jail after filming herself running onto the field at a recent Los Angeles Angels game. Julia Hill, who has 1.7 million followers on TikTok, could be seen climbing over the barrier at Angel Stadium in Anaheim and sprinting onto the field during their game against the Cincinnati Reds. In the video, the camera is focused on Hill the entire time and she screams out in excitement as she sprints around the field. The post then cuts to a different angle where Hill can be seen lying face down on the field with cops and security placing her in handcuffs. She is then seeing being led off the field and to jail in Anaheim, where she claims she spent around six hours. Upon her release, she said: 'Guys, just got out of jail. It's like 2:23am. I was in jail for, like, six hours. Honestly I thought I was never coming out for a second.' Hill captioned the video on TikTok 'Intrusive thoughts got the better of me'. It has so far been watched 5.6 million times and has just over a million likes. In Anaheim, trying to run on the field in Angel Stadium is considered trespassing and, therefore, a misdemeanor. People who violate that law may face imprisonment for up to six months or a fine of not more than $1,000. But Hill didn't seem bothered by the potential ramifications. Titled 'Just got out of jail', she posted another video of herself outside the police station and was seemingly laughing off the experience. Set to Tee Grizzley's 'First Day Out', Hill can be seen mouthing the lyrics while dancing around. That video has been watched 1.7m times.
Reuters
26 minutes ago
- Reuters
Vance, Hegseth greet troops in Washington, face jeers from protesters
WASHINGTON, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Top Trump administration officials on Wednesday thanked troops deployed in the nation's capital and blasted demonstrators opposed to the aggressive anti-crime efforts as "stupid white hippies." At Union Station, Washington's central train hub, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, accompanied by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, shook hands with National Guard soldiers at a Shake Shack restaurant. "You're doing a hell of a job," Vance said, as demonstrators drowned him out with jeers and shouts of "Free D.C.!" He urged troops to ignore the "bunch of crazy protesters," while Miller dismissed them as "stupid white hippies." The unfamiliar scene - the country's vice president and top defense official visiting troops deployed not to a war zone but to an American city's tourist-filled transit hub - underscored the extraordinary nature of the Trump administration's crackdown in the Democratic-led District of Columbia. Thousands of Guard soldiers and federal agents have been deployed to the city over the objections of its elected leaders to combat what Trump says is a violent crime wave. City officials have rejected that assertion, pointing to federal and city statistics that show violent crime has declined significantly since a spike in 2023. The president has said, without providing evidence, that the crime data is fraudulent. The Justice Department has opened an investigation into whether the numbers were manipulated, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources. Amid the crackdown, federal prosecutors in the District have been told to stop seeking felony charges against people who violate a local law prohibiting individuals from carrying rifles or shotguns in the nation's capital. The decision by District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, which was first reported by the Washington Post, represents a break from the office's prior policy. In a statement, Pirro said prosecutors will still be able to charge people with other illegal firearms crimes, such as a convicted felon found in possession of a gun. "We will continue to seize all illegal and unlicensed firearms," she said. The White House has touted the number of firearms seized by law enforcement since Trump began surging federal agents and troops into the city. In a social media post on Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the operation had taken 76 illegal guns off the streets and resulted in more than 550 arrests, an average of 42 per day. The city's Metropolitan Police Department arrested an average of 61 adults and juveniles per day in 2024, according to city statistics. The Trump administration has not specified whether the arrest totals it has cited include those made by MPD officers or only consist of those made by federal agents. A D.C. code bars anyone from carrying a rifle or shotgun, with narrow exceptions. In her statement, Pirro, a close Trump ally, argued that the law violates two U.S. Supreme Court decisions expanding gun rights. In 2008, the court struck down a separate D.C. law banning handguns and ruled that individuals have the right to keep firearms in their homes for self-defense. In 2022, the court ruled that any gun-control law must be rooted in the country's historical traditions to be valid. Unlike U.S. attorneys in all 50 states, who only prosecute federal offenses, the U.S. attorney in Washington prosecutes local crimes as well. D.C. crime rates have stayed mostly the same as they were a year ago, according to the police department's weekly statistics. As of Tuesday, the city's overall crime rate is down 7% year over year, the same percentage as before the crackdown. D.C. has also experienced the same declines in violent crime and property crime as it did beforehand, according to the data.
