Dongfan
"Greg" Chung, 74, was sentenced by a federal court to more
than 15 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney, who
wanted the long-time Chinese spy to face appropriate punishment for
his actions.
During his tenure as a Boeing engineer, he
reportedly took home 300,000 pages of classified Boeing documents.
Specifically, he had documents of the Delta IV rocket, space shuttle,
F-15 fighter, CH-46/47 Chinook helicopter and B-52 bomber, along with
other aerospace technologies from Boeing.
Chung
secretly worked
with the Chinese government for up to 30 years, and was the first
person convicted under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996.
Chung
claimed he took the documents home for a new book he was working on,
but
was unable to provide evidence. Both the judge and
prosecutor didn't believe the excuse, and said he caused damage to
both Boeing and the United States.
"Your honor, I am not
a spy, I am only an ordinary man," Chung said during the
sentencing. "Your honor, I love this country... Your
honor, I beg your pardon and let me live with my family
peacefully."
Federal prosecutors previously requested a
20-year prison sentence, regardless of Chung's age. The period
of time from the start of his crime removed the chance of leniency,
legal experts noted.
The U.S. government aims to crackdown on
espionage committed by foreign residents working for U.S.
contractors. There is a growing concern China continues to
recruit spies.
