The Justice Department on Tuesday unsealed charges against 10 Chinese spies, hackers and others accused of conspiring to steal sensitive commercial airline and other secrets from U.S. and European companies.
The indictment marks the third time since September that the United States has brought charges against Chinese intelligence officers and their recruits for stealing American intellectual property.
“This is just the beginning,” Assistant Attorney General John Demers said. “Together with our federal partners, we will redouble our efforts to safeguard America’s ingenuity and investment.”
The alleged conspiracy ran for at least five years beginning in 2010, and focused on the theft of technology underlying a turbofan engine used in U.S. and European commercial jets, officials said.
The engine was being developed through a partnership between a French company with an office in Suzhou, China, and a U.S. company.
