US judge sentences Chinese national for trying to illegally export ‘highly sensitive’ military technology
- Tao Li, 39, is given 40 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to export ‘military and space-grade’ components to China without a licence
- He was arrested in September 2018 at Los Angeles International Airport while travelling from China to Arizona to meet with an undercover agent
A US district judge has sentenced a Chinese national accused of using multiple aliases and conspiring to illegally export “highly sensitive” US military technology to China to 40 months in prison.
The US Justice Department said on Friday that Tao Li, 39, tried to procure “military and space-grade technology” in violation of the US export control laws. Judge Diane J. Humetewa of the District of Arizona handed down the sentence, which included three years of supervised release after the prison term, on Wednesday.
Li had previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to export the technology to China without a licence in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The act authorises the US president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to a threat to the country.
According to the Justice Department, from December 2016 to January 2018 Li worked with other individuals in China to purchase radiation-hardened power amplifiers and supervisory circuits.
Li, who lived in China, used multiple aliases to contact individuals in the US, including representatives of US-based private companies, in a bid to obtain the electronic components, the department said.