The Scientist and the Spy
Page 26
wearing dark sunglasses: What follows is Kevin’s version of events, based on an account that he wrote after the interview. Kevin’s role in the investigation was confirmed by investigators and in court documents.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Oh, my,” Ye Jian said: Unless otherwise noted, dialogue in this chapter is drawn from U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57 (July 2, 2014); U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 290–1 (April 27, 2015); and U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 597 (January 28, 2016).
Arrowsmith, Foosland, Rantoul: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57.
collected whole ears of corn: Ibid.; interview with Mark Betten and Jason Griess.
slow things down: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 661 (November 1, 2016).
highly publicized arrests: At the time of the corn collection trip, Xue Feng, a U.S. citizen employed by a Houston-based petroleum research company, was languishing in Chinese prison on charges of stealing state secrets. Xue’s defenders say he merely gathered information on Chinese oil wells that is commonly included in public databases. See Catherine Matacic, “Geologist Reflects on Life Behind Bars in China,” Science, July 6, 2015, https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/07/geologist-reflects-life-behind-bars-china. Chinese-American scientists are in the unenviable position of falling under suspicion in both countries.
the printing press: Ezra Vogel, Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China (Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap, 2013), 671.
HEY CHINA! STOP STEALING OUR STUFF: Bloomberg Businessweek, March 19, 2012.
“greatest transfer of wealth”: Keith Alexander, “Cybersecurity and American Power,” speech presented at American Enterprise Institute (July 9, 2012), https://www.aei.org/events/cybersecurity-and-american-power/. Alexander spoke generally about cyberespionage and intellectual property theft from all countries. He later narrowed the remark to apply specifically to China.
Ye Jian sighed audibly: The laughs and sighs are noted in the transcript of this conversation, which appears at U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 290–1.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
replaced by a supervisory agent: This is according to Kevin.
hired someone to spray: The weed problem, the remodeling project, and the vandalism are corroborated by Kevin’s email correspondence with Robert. Photos of the house posted online when it was put up for sale after Robert’s conviction show the effects of both the remodeling project and the vandalism.
Mow the lawn: Kevin Montgomery email to Robert Mo, July 21, 2012.
“So when can you send the seed?”: This is Kevin’s recollection of the conversation.
“I would like to know how”: Kevin Montgomery email to Robert Mo, October 6, 2012.
CHAPTER TWENTY
gave them forty-eight hours: A visit from the FBI might have made the matter more urgent for the manager. U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 1 (December 11, 2013).
rented the shed: Ibid.
a rented silver Dodge: Ibid.
exercising in the gym: Interview with Robert Mo. Mark Betten confirmed some details surrounding his visit, but said that the FBI did not know what Robert did in his hotel.
Ninety-five percent chance: Ibid.
bearing mooncakes: Ibid.
joined by Michael Yao: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 1.
they coded these packets: Ibid.
broke for a meal: Interview with Robert Mo.
returned the Dodge Journey: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 1.
send a set of seeds: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 558 (December 22, 2015). Robert disputes that he carried one of the sets to Florida.
“Your Z-1 F-1 is a set?”: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 599 (January 28, 2016).
a federal jury: “Former Employee of New Jersey Defense Contractor Convicted of Exporting Sensitive Military Technology to China,” FBI, September 26, 2012, https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/newark/press-releases/2012/former-employee-of-new-jersey-defense-contractor-convicted-of-exporting-sensitive-military-technology-to-china.
stealing hybrid car secrets: “Two Convicted in Conspiracy to Steal GM Trade Secrets Sentenced to Prison,” FBI, April 30, 2013, https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/detroit/press-releases/2013/two-convicted-in-conspiracy-to-steal-gm-trade-secrets-sentenced-to-prison.
Remove any traceable marks: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57 (July 2, 2014).
“The car has been washed many times”: Ibid.
included a plastic bag: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 1.
loose kernels of corn: Ibid.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
liberally used since September 11, 2001: See, for example, Sophia Cope, “Law Enforcement Uses Border Search Exception as Fourth Amendment Loophole,” Electronic Frontier Foundation, December 8, 2016, https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2016/12/law-enforcement-uses-border-search-exception-fourth-amendment-loophole.
Pop Weaver and Orville Redenbacher boxes: The account that follows is primarily based on U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57 (July 2, 2014).
guise of U.S. agriculture regulations: Email correspondence with Jason Griess.
a thousand company documents: Vikki Ortiz, “Woman Indicted in the Theft of Business Secrets,” Chicago Tribune, April 3, 2008, https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2008-04-03-0804021072-story.html.
in the rural Midwest: Interview with Mark Betten and Jason Griess.
hadn’t yet been translated: Interview with Jason Griess.
let the men fly back: Ibid.
said he was traveling alone: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57.
from a man named Mo Hailong: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 558 (December 22, 2015).
United flight to Burlington: The account that follows is primarily based on U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 57.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Ye Jian called him: Interview with Robert Mo. Mark Betten confirmed that the various DBN employees were in touch with one another after the airport bust.
It’s normal for them to check: Ibid.
opened a document: Interview with Mark Betten.
“The team led by Dr. Li”: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 558 (December 22, 2015). The FBI found this draft letter on Robert’s devices when his house was searched following his arrest. It’s unclear whether he sent it.
in a basketball game: Interview with Robert Mo.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
conviction rate is 93 percent: “United States Attorneys’ Annual Statistical Report for Fiscal Year 2012,” Department of Justice, http://www.justice.gov/usao/reading_room/reports/asr2012/12statrpt.pdf.
news in his office: Interview with Haipei Shue.
charging her with four felonies: Nicole Perlroth, “Accused of Spying for China, Until She Wasn’t,” New York Times, May 9, 2015, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/business/accused-of-spying-for-china-until-she-wasnt.html. Also see Mara Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists in the Crosshairs,” Science, November 12, 2015, https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/11/feature-chinese-american-scientists-crosshairs.
letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch: Ted Lieu to Loretta E. Lynch, November 5, 2015.
“civil rights problem”: Ted Lieu, “Statement on Xi Xiaoxing,” September 14, 2015, https://lieu.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/representative-lieu-statement-xi-xiaoxing.
received a reply: Lieu to Lynch.
emigrated from China in 1989: Many of these details are drawn from reporting I did. Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists.”
fanned out through the house: This is Joyce Xi’s account. The FBI declined to comment on the details of Xi’s case.
a backstop charge: Interview with Nelson Dong.
“just completely misconceived”: Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists.”
“came to the attention”: Ibid.
“emailing while Chinese-American”: Clif Burns, “US Drops Charges Agai
nst Prof Accused of Emailing While Chinese-American,” Export Law Blog, September 13, 2015, https://www.exportlawblog.com/archives/7187.
“America I thought I knew”: Joyce Xi, “To Get My Father, Xiaoxing Xi, FBI Twisted America’s Ideals,” USA Today, September 20, 2015.
three other ethnically Chinese: Charges were dismissed against a sixth defendant, former Michigan State University professor Ning Xi, in July 2019.
his job responsibilities: U.S. v. Guoqing Cao and Shuyu Li, Document 195 (November 21, 2014).
published papers years earlier: Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists.”
“The word is not treason”: “Indictment: Ex-Lilly Workers Stole Trade Secrets,” Associated Press, October 8, 2013, https://www.apnews.com/70a17950c12342b9805fd091cd8acbaf.
“two and two together”: Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists.”
“As a former prosecutor”: Interview with Peter Zeidenberg.
legal defense fund: “Sherry Chen Legal Defense Fund,” https://www.sherrychendefensefund.org/.
“Fifteen years had passed”: Interview with Aryani Ong.
governing trade secrets theft: Interviews with Nelson Dong and Peter Zeidenberg (two of the presenters); PowerPoint presentation prepared by Peter Zeidenberg.
“The indictments have instilled”: Hvistendahl, “Chinese-American Scientists.”
21 percent of defendants: Andrew Chongseh Kim, “Prosecuting Chinese ‘Spies’: An Empirical Analysis of the Economic Espionage Act,” Cardozo Law Review 40, no. 2 (February 2019), http://cardozolawreview.com/prosecuting-chinese-spies-an-empirical-analysis-of-the-economic-espionage-act/.
Kim also found that defendants with Chinese surnames received longer sentences than those with Western names—twenty-five months versus eleven months. A separate study analyzing 137 trade secrets theft cases using a different methodology found a similar gap: Defendants with Chinese surnames received an average sentence of thirty-two months. Those without Chinese surnames received only fifteen months. Thomas Nolan, “Trends in Trade Secrets Prosecutions,” White Paper, http://jeremy-wu.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Trends-in-Trade-Secret-Prosecutions.pdf.
“findings raise the possibility”: Andrew Kim, “Prosecuting Chinese ‘Spies,’” White Paper for Committee of 100, May 2017, https://committee100.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/2017-Kim-White-Paper-online.pdf.
“an ethnic cast”: Noah Feldman, “Prosecutors’ Misplaced Fear of Scientists,” Bloomberg, September 17, 2015, https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2015-09-17/prosecutors-misplaced-fear-of-scientists.
10 percent of all science: “Doctorate Recipients from U.S. Universities 2017,” National Science Foundation, December 4, 2018, https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf19301/data.
Los Alamos club: “America’s Hidden Role in Chinese Weapons Research,” South China Morning Post, March 29, 2017, https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2082738/americas-hidden-role-chinese-weapons-research.
60 Minutes aired a segment: “Collateral Damage,” 60 Minutes, May 15, 2016, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/collateral-damage-60-minutes-bill-whitaker/.
“acted with reckless haste”: “The Rush to Find China’s Moles,” New York Times, September 15, 2015, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/15/opinion/the-rush-to-find-chinas-moles.html.
instituted a rule change: Matt Apuzzo, “After Missteps, U.S. Tightens Rules for Espionage Cases,” New York Times, April 26, 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/27/us/after-missteps-us-tightens-rules-for-national-security-cases.html.
“patently racist accusation”: “Ohio Scientist Accused of Spying Sues Government After Charges Dropped,” 9 WCPO Cincinnati, January 22, 2019, https://www.wcpo.com/news/state/state-ohio/ohio-scientist-accused-of-spying-sues-after-charges-dropped.
brought a suit against: Xiaoxing Xi v. FBI Special Agent Andrew Haugen and John Doe(s).
WASHINGTON’S SPY CHARGES . . . “history of indulging”: Global Times, May 21, 2015, http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/922773.shtml.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
obtained a warrant: Interview with Mark Betten. The FBI had court authorization to seize the seed but needed a secondary warrant to test it.
twenty-five thousand seeds: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 506 (November 24, 2015).
on both sides of the road: Interview with Jason Griess.
harsher on companies: Lina Khan, “How Monsanto Outfoxed the Obama Administration,” Salon, March 15, 2013, https://www.salon.com/2013/03/15/how_did_monsanto_outfox_the_obama_administration/.
only a short note: “Monsanto Notified That U.S. Department of Justice Has Concluded Its Inquiry,” Monsanto, November 16, 2012, available through Internet Archive at https://web.archive.org/web/20170309095207/http://www.monsanto.com/newsviews/pages/monsanto-notified-that-us-department-of-justice-has-concluded-its-inquiry.aspx.
it was noteworthy: Jason Griess maintained there is no connection between the two cases.
$6 million a year: Russ Choma, “Monsanto’s Deep Roots in Washington,” OpenSecrets.org, May 9, 2012, https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2012/05/monsantos-deep-roots-in-washington/.
Monsanto’s counsel feared: Interview with Mark Betten.
followed the FBI’s investigation: Interview with Jason Griess.
$1 billion jury verdict: Carey Gillian, “Monsanto, DuPont Strike $1.75 Billion Licensing Deal, End Lawsuits,” Reuters, March 26, 2013, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-monsanto-dupont-gmo/monsanto-dupont-strike-1-75-billion-licensing-deal-end-lawsuits-idUSBRE92P0IK20130326.
tend to be anticompetitive: Interview with Diana Moss.
sent out 652 seed samples: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 506.
bus with tinted windows: “Xi Jinping: shishi chuangxin qudong bu neng dengdai guanwang xiedai,” Xinhua, October 1, 2013, http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2013-10-01/152428347406.shtml.
first ever held off-site: Richard P. Applebaum et al., Innovation in China (Cambridge, U.K.: Polity Press, 2018), 53.
“We must seize the opportunities”: “Xi Jinping: shishi chuangxin.”
a bust would squander: Interview with Jason Griess.
to attend the World Pork Expo: Interview with Mark Betten.
improve its negotiating position: Ibid.
sold at the end of the season: Ibid.
changed somewhere along the way: Ibid. Kevin Montgomery believes DBN employees gave no indication of a desire to chase the self on the Monee property. Unless they were to purchase a specialized research planter—which, as far as Kevin knows, they did not—such an activity would have required hand-planting and other difficult farm labor. The existence of a nursery also would have been obvious to Kevin and any others who visited the property.
have enough information to start: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 506.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
lacked a command: Interview with Kevin Montgomery.
Seed Today and Seed World: Details on the conference are available at ASTA Seed Expo 2012, https://www.betterseed.org/pdfs/events/asta-css-seed-expo/CSS2012-guide.pdf.
“Nutrient Accumulation Patterns”: Ibid.
“the CEO’s brother-in-law”: Interview with Kevin Montgomery.
telling Kevin that he was: Ibid. The account that follows is as recalled by Kevin.
create new super seeds: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 661 (November 1, 2016).
the Keystone Kops: Kevin was not the only person to make this comparison.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
6:00 A.M. on December 11: Interview with Robert Mo. Mark Betten could not confirm the time, but he noted that raids often happen at 6:00 A.M. because that is the earliest hour permitted by most federal warrants.
arrange the arrest date: Interview with Mark Betten.
spook and flee: Ibid.
Robert’s wife, Carolyn: Interview with Robert Mo.
&
nbsp; past a Christmas tree: Interview with Valentin Rodriguez (the attorney who represented Robert Mo at his bail hearing).
flash drives, external hard drives: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 224–3 (March 13, 2015).
More than twenty devices in total: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 92 (August 1, 2014).
seized tax records: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 153–2 (December 15, 2014).
Robert and Carolyn’s two children: Interview with Robert Mo.
sketch artist pulled out: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 224–3.
$250,000 initiation fee: Charles M. Sennott, “In Palm Beach, Donald Trump’s Exclusive Golf Resort Sits Next to County Jail,” GlobalPost, April 8, 2013, https://www.pri.org/stories/2013-04-08/palm-beach-donald-trumps-exclusive-golf-resort-sits-next-county-jail.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
fifteen hundred inmates: Charles M. Sennott, “In Palm Beach, Donald Trump’s Exclusive Golf Resort Sits Next to County Jail,” GlobalPost, April 8, 2013, https://www.pri.org/stories/2013-04-08/palm-beach-donald-trumps-exclusive-golf-resort-sits-next-county-jail.
put on proper clothes: This is Robert’s account of his arrest.
The more famous: Interview with Robert Mo.
recommended removing it: Interview with Robert Mo.
private wing of the jail: Julie K. Brown, “Even from Jail, Sex Abuser Manipulated the System. His Victims Were Kept in the Dark,” Miami Herald, November 28, 2018, https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article219494920.html.
FBI’s extensive bugging: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 1 (December 11, 2013).
denying his request: U.S. v. Mo Hailong, Document 19–9 (January 23, 2014).
shackled his hands and feet: This is Robert’s version of events. His description is roughly consistent with other accounts of prisoner transportation. Jason Griess confirmed that Oklahoma City is used as a transport hub.
the diesel treatment: Interview with Robert Mo.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
the Chinese Press: Chen Jia, “Seeds Becoming a Mysterious—and Dangerous—Business,” China Daily, December 18, 2013, http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/epaper/2013-12/18/content_17182452.htm.
China-U.S. Friendship Farm: Kyle Munson, “China Is Recreating an Iowa Farm Near Beijing. And There’s a Lot at Stake for Both Countries,” Des Moines Register, September 23, 2017, https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/local/columnists/kyle-munson/2017/09/23/china-rolls-out-red-carpet-begin-building-its-first-iowa-farm/696214001/; also see “Zhongmei youyi shifan nongchang gainian xing guihua,” http://www.jyuwliu.com/html/shouyegh42018-06-27901.html [inactive].