Chinese American scientists reveal agony of being accused by US of passing secrets to China as charges are dropped
Two Chinese American scientists who were indicted by the United States for spying only to see their charges abruptly abandoned spoke out Tuesday against the ordeal they had been put through.
The cases have led some US lawmakers and Chinese American community groups to demand a probe into whether they were unfairly targeted because of their background.
Professor Xiaoxing Xi, former chair of physics at Temple University, learned last week he would not be charged with spying for sharing a schematic with a Chinese colleague.
Read more: Temple University professor charged with offering sensitive data to China
In March, another naturalised US citizen, government hydrologist Sherry Chen, discovered she would not be tried for accessing sensitive data and lying to federal agents.
In both cases, their lawyer said, Department of Justice prosecutors dropped the criminal cases against them once confronted with detailed explanations of the facts.
Neither face further criminal prosecution, but Chen remains distraught at losing the job she loved working at the US National Weather Service on a model to predict river flows.