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WESTCHESTER, N.Y. – Three Westchester researchers face conspiracy accusations for allegedly taking bribes from a Chinese company and a Chinese government-supported research group, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Monday afternoon.
The three men – Scarsdale resident Yudong Zhu, and Hartsdale residents Xing Yang and Ye Li – who worked on improving MRI technology at a university located in New York City also had undisclosed affiliations with a Chinese company, for which they performed the same type of research, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The research at the university was funded by a multi-million-dollar federal grant provided by the National Institutes of Health, the release said.
Zhu, 44, Yang, 31, and Li, 31, were each charged with one count of commercial bribery conspiracy. Zhu was also charged with one count of falsification of records in connection with the federal grant.
The men conspired to receive payments from the Chinese company and a Chinese government-supported research institution in exchange for providing non-public information about research they conducted at the university, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Zhu allegedly lied about conflicts of interest in connection with the federal research grant, which he caused the university to apply for, the release said.
Zhu and Yang were arrested at their Westchester homes on Sunday and Li is believed to have flown to China before he was served with charges, the release said. Zhu and Yang were expected to appear in Manhattan federal court later Monday afternoon. The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds Unit.
If convicted of the commercial bribery conspiracy charge, each man could face up to five years in prison. The charge of falsification of records would carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
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