Chinese professor faces US fraud charge over claims he took technology to help Huawei
- Academic charged over claims that first emerged in civil case between Chinese tech giant and Silicon Valley start-up CNEX Labs
- Huawei is facing string of allegations in US courts and says decision to charge Bo Mao is latest example of ‘selective prosecution’
US prosecutors have charged a Chinese professor with fraud for allegedly taking technology from a California company to benefit Huawei, in another shot at the embattled Chinese telecommunications equipment maker.
Bo Mao was arrested in Texas on August 14 and released six days later on US$100,000 bond after he consented to proceed with the case in New York, according to court documents.
He pleaded not guilty in US District Court in Brooklyn on August 28 to a charge of conspiring to commit wire fraud.
According to the criminal complaint, Mao entered into an agreement with the unnamed California tech company to obtain its circuit board, claiming it was for academic research.
But the complaint accuses an unidentified Chinese telecommunications conglomerate, which sources say is Huawei, of trying to steal the technology, and alleges Mao played a role in its alleged scheme. A court document also indicates the case is related to Huawei.