WASHINGTON: A Chinese intelligence officer was convicted in US federal court on Friday of economic espionage in an alleged state-backed effort to steal technology from US and French aerospace firms, the Justice Department said.
The economic espionage charges carry a maximum of 15 years in prison each and a fine of up to US$5 million, while the other charges bring up to 10 years in prison each. "Xu attempted to steal technology related to GE Aviation's exclusive composite aircraft engine fan, which no other company in the world has been able to duplicate, to benefit the Chinese state," the Justice Department said in a statement.