Former Ohio State researcher pleads guilty for lying to FBI about ties to Chinese government

Jack Long
Fri, 13 Nov 2020 01:49:26 +0000
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Former Ohio State researcher and professor Song Guo Zheng pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday for making false statements to federal authorities about his ties to the Chinese government. Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Lantern File Photo

A former Ohio State researcher and professor pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday for making false claims to federal authorities as part of an investigation into his ties to China.

Song Guo Zheng was charged in July for using more than $4.1 million in federal grants to funnel research back to China to help the country develop expertise in rheumatology and immunology. He was also charged with making false statements about being employed in China at the same time as he was employed at U.S. universities, including Ohio State, according to a press release from the U.S. Southern District of Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

“Zheng promised China he would enhance the country’s biomedical research. He was preparing to flee the United States after he learned that his American employer had begun an administrative process into whether or not he was complying with American taxpayer-funded grant rules,” David DeVillers, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, said in the release.?

“Today’s plea reinforces our proven commitment to protect our country’s position as a global leader in research and innovation, and to punish those who try to exploit and undermine that position.”?

Zheng was arrested in May after arriving at an airport in Alaska. He originally told federal authorities that he was traveling to visit his sick father. He was carrying five pieces of luggage that held two laptops, three cell phones, USB drives, silver bars, expired Chinese passports and deeds for property in China.

Zheng participated in the Chinese Talent Plan since 2013, according to the press release. The Chinese Talent Plan, also known as the Thousand Talent Plan, is a program the Chinese government uses to recruit scientists, academics and other experts to conduct work in China, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.

In a statement, university spokesperson Ben Johnson said Zheng was terminated after being placed on unpaid leave earlier this year.?

“Zheng failed to disclose his extensive paid work at a foreign institution to Ohio State, and the university has terminated his employment,” Johnson said. “We will continue to assist federal law enforcement authorities in every way possible.”

Nine days before Zheng was arrested in Alaska, Ohio State confronted Zheng about his possible failure to fully disclose all potential conflict of interests after the university was notified by the National Institutes of Health of the potential conflicts.

Zheng came to Ohio State in 2019 and was the endowed Ronald L. Whisler M.D. Chair in Rheumatology and Immunology and a researcher at the College of Medicine. While employed at the university, Zheng was also employed at a hospital at Sun Yat-Sen University in Guangzhou, China, which he did not disclose to Ohio State or NIH.

Making false statements to federal authorities is punishable up to five years in prison.