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Couple found guilty of trying to sell GM hybrid tech to China sentenced to year in prison

Seyth Miersma — Sat, 04 May 2013 13:00:00 EST

Five months ago, former General Motors engineer Shanshan Du and her husband, Yu Qin were convicted of stealing hybrid technology trade secrets, in attempts to sell the information to Chinese competitors.

US District Judge Marianne Battani sentenced Du to serve one year and one day in prison, a relatively lightweight sentence compared with the minimum six and a half years called for by Federal guidelines. (The minimum sentence is not mandatory, in this instance.) Qin meanwhile, who was convicted of fraud and obstruction of justice, in addition to the conspiracy and possessing trade secrets convictions he shared with his wife, was sentenced to three years in prison. Both will remain free until late this summer.

The Associated Press and ABC News report that Judge Battani took Du's health problems, as well as threat to the public, into account with the sentencing. Said Battani, "I don't think the public needs to be protected from you, but it needs to be protected from others like you," according to the AP story.

Du and Qin both admitted to being guilty of and remorseful for their crimes, claiming they made "wrong decisions."

Couple found guilty of trying to sell GM hybrid tech to China sentenced to year in prison originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 04 May 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Former GM engineer found guilty of trying to sell trade secrets

Chris Tutor — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Government/Legal, Technology, GM, Chery, Electric

After an almost month-long trial, former General Motors engineer Shanshan Du and her husband, Yu Qin, were convicted Sunday of stealing hybrid vehicle trade secrets from the automaker. Qin was convicted on seven counts, while Du was convicted of three trade-secret counts but acquitted of wire fraud charges.

Prosecutors said Qin used the data in attempts to either get employment with or form partnerships with GM's Chinese competitors, including Chery Automobile Co. GM claimed in the trial that the secrets were worth more than $40 million. Defense lawyers said the data wasn't secret, wasn't stolen and was "useless for other companies."

"These defendants stole trade secrets, which General Motors spent many years and millions of dollars to develop, to give an unfair advantage to a foreign competitor," US Attorney Barbara McQuade said. "We hope that this prosecution will send a message that stealing proprietary information from an employer or competitor is a serious crime."

Du worked for GM from 2000 until her resignation in 2005. Prosecutors argued that Du and her husband had formed Millennium Technology International through which they had hoped to sell the stolen information. Lawyers said 16,262 stolen files were found on Du's computer.

Sentencing is scheduled for February. The couple face maximum sentences of 10 years on each trade secret count and fines of as much $250,000.

Former GM engineer found guilty of trying to sell trade secrets originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 03 Dec 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Ex-GM worker accused of stealing hybrid secrets

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:29:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Government/Legal, Technology, GM

It seems that the lure of stealing trade secrets from a former employer has struck again, this time involving General Motors. Ex-GM employee Shanshan Du and her husband Yu Qin have reportedly been indicted by a federal grand jury for their part in an alleged conspiracy to steal hybrid vehicle information from The General.

It seems that Du waited until five days after she received a severance package from the automaker before copying thousands of documents back in January of 2005 related to hybrid technology. In May of the following year, Du and her husband are said to have shredded the documents and dumped them in a bin behind a nearby store after the grand jury began its inquiry.

Between those two dates, it is alleged that Du's husband entered into an agreement with Chinese automaker Chery to provide hybrid technology from his company, Millennium Technology International. According to General Motors, the stolen data is worth about $40 million.

This is not the first time we've seen such cases. Late last year, Former Ford engineer Xiang Dong Yu was arrested and indicted on suspicion of stealing trade secrets from his former employer.

[Source: Detroit Free Press, CNN]

Report: Ex-GM worker accused of stealing hybrid secrets originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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