Mon, Jul 06, 2009
Chinese, Iranian Students Allowed To See Sensitive Data
71-year-old John Reese Roth has
been sentenced to four years in federal prison for allowing Chinese
grad students to see sensitive information on UAV's while working
on a research project. The prominent plasma physicist was charged
with 18 counts of wire fraud, conspiracy, and violations of the
Arms Export Control Act.
Scientific American reports Roth helped found "Atmospheric Glow
Technologies" after retiring from the University of Tennessee. The
company primarily conducts research into using RF technology to
create plasma gas used for sterilization of medical instruments and
other applications. But it also had a contract with the Air Force
for the development of plasma actuators that could reduce drag on
UAV's. Under the contract, Roth was prohibited from sharing that
information with foreign nationals.
The indictment charged that Roth defied that contract and
carried his laptop containing the sensitive information with him on
a lecture tour in China. He also allowed Chinese and Iranian
nationals to work with him on the project.
During his trial, Roth claimed he didn't think hiring the
graduate students to help him with the research violated his
contract. Otherwise, he testified, he would not have agreed to
participate in the research. His attorney had filed notice of
appeal.
File Photo
“The illegal export of restricted military data represents
a serious threat to national security,” David Kris of the
U.S. Department of Justice, said in a statement, “We know
that foreign governments are actively seeking this information for
their own military development. Today’s sentence should serve
as a warning to anyone who knowingly discloses restricted military
data in violation of our laws.”
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