Third Chinese national accused of smuggling biological materials into Michigan

CBS News

4 hours ago

A third Chinese national is accused of smuggling biological materials into the U.S. for work at a University of Michigan laboratory.
Chengxuan Han, of the People's Republic of China, is charged with smuggling goods into the U.S. and making false statements.
Authorities say Han is a doctoral student at the College of Life Science and Technology in the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China. According to a criminal complaint, in 2024 and 2025, Han sent four packages to the U.S. from China containing concealed biological material. The packages were addressed to persons associated with a University of Michigan laboratory.
On June 8, Han was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after arriving on a J1 visa. Officers inspected Han, who, during that time, reportedly lied to officials about the packages and the biological materials she is accused of previously sending to the U.S. Officers say Han related content from an electronic device three days before arriving in the U.S.
While being interviewed by the FBI, agents say Han admitted to sending the packages, saying the packages contained biological material related to roundworms. She also admitted to lying to officers during her inspection.
The FBI, ICE, Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection are investigating the case.
"The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China — to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory — is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security," said U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. "The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions."
Han is the third Chinese national accused of smuggling biological material into Michigan in the last week. On June 3, Yunqing Jian, 33, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan, and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, 34, were charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., false statements and visa fraud.
Officials allege that Liu, who works at a Chinese university where he conducts research on the same pathogen, first lied but later admitted to smuggling Fusarium graminearum — a fungus classified by scientific literature as a potential agroterrorism weapon — into Detroit Metro Airport so that he could conduct research on it at a University of Michigan lab that Jian worked.
The FBI arrested Jain on June 3. Liu has since returned to China.
The Chinese Consulate General in Chicago issued the following statement on the charges:
We saw the news from U.S. media reports and are working on learning about the case through relevant channels. The Chinese Consulate General in Chicago has lodged a solemn démarche with the U.S. side on its law enforcement's failure to fulfill the relevant obligations stipulated in the China-U.S. Consular Convention.
The Chinese government has always required Chinese nationals overseas to strictly observe local laws and regulations, including the Entry and Exit regulations, while resolutely protecting their legitimate and lawful rights and interests in accordance with the law. China firmly opposes the U.S. side making political manipulation on related cases under the pretext of ideology and overstretched national security.
Han will appear Monday afternoon in federal court in Detroit.