- Scientist in New Mexico accused of concealing truth about involvement in China’s Thousand Talents Programme
- The state-run programme has added to US concerns about espionage from China
Associated Press
China’s Thousand Talents Programme aids the transfer of American technology and know-how to China.
China’s Thousand Talents Programme aids the transfer of American technology and know-how to China.
Chinese spy Turab Lookman
A scientist for a US laboratory in New Mexico is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday on charges that he lied about contact he had with a state-run programme in China that seeks to draw foreign-educated talent.
Turab Lookman, who lives in Santa Fe and until recently worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, was asked on an employment questionnaire and by federal officials if he had been recruited by China’s Thousand Talents Programme or applied to work there, authorities said.
He is accused in an indictment filed last week of falsely stating three times between November 2017 and September 2018 that he had not.
Thousand Talents is a programme established by China to recruit people with access to and knowledge of foreign technology and intellectual property.
A scientist for a US laboratory in New Mexico is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday on charges that he lied about contact he had with a state-run programme in China that seeks to draw foreign-educated talent.
Turab Lookman, who lives in Santa Fe and until recently worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, was asked on an employment questionnaire and by federal officials if he had been recruited by China’s Thousand Talents Programme or applied to work there, authorities said.
He is accused in an indictment filed last week of falsely stating three times between November 2017 and September 2018 that he had not.
Thousand Talents is a programme established by China to recruit people with access to and knowledge of foreign technology and intellectual property.
For years, it was known as one of many state initiatives aimed at reversing a decades-long brain drain in China.
Earlier this year, a Chinese research oceanographer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was sentenced to time served in Florida for working for the US agency and two China programmes, one of which was Thousand Talents.
Earlier this year, a Chinese research oceanographer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was sentenced to time served in Florida for working for the US agency and two China programmes, one of which was Thousand Talents.
Chinese spy Chunzai Wang
Chunzai Wang’s sentence came after he pleaded guilty to a charge of accepting a salary from another source while working for NOAA.
Lookman was arrested on Thursday on charges of making false statements, and faces up to five years in prison if convicted, according to the US attorney’s office.
His hearing on Tuesday morning in Albuquerque is being held to determine whether he should be detained as he awaits trial.
Court records did not yet list a lawyer for Lookman.
The Albuquerque Journal reported that Lookman began working in 1999 at the laboratory in Los Alamos.
The once-secret city in the mountains of northern New Mexico is where the atomic bomb was developed decades ago as part of the Manhattan Project.
The laboratory is now tasked with ensuring the safety of the nation’s nuclear stockpile, reducing weapons threats and tackling energy, infrastructure, health and security problems.
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