The Chinese government of late has come under intense scrutiny for its attempts to infiltrate American institutions in efforts to obtain information of value. Such efforts have reached the state of Alabama.
Xiaoming Zhang, an Air War College professor at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, pleaded guilty to lying to federal agents regarding a relationship he held with a Chinese government official.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Zhang began his tenure at the college in 2003. As part of his job and to visit family, Zhang, a Chinese immigrant, would routinely take trips to the far eastern country.
Nearly a decade ago, the professor formed a relationship with a government official affiliated with the Shanghai Municipal Government. The DOJ says records indicate that Zhang, who held a “secret” security clearance, met with the official approximately six times from December 2012 through January 2017. The two exchanged around 40 emails during the same time period.
In the four-year span, it had become clear to Zhang that the Chinese official was attempting to leverage their relationship to obtain sensitive information and make contacts with other individuals of value. Despite reporting requirements which mandate individuals who hold a “secret” security clearance to report suspicious activity, Zhang failed to alert authorities.
When considering extending Zhang’s security clearance for his job at the Air War College, investigators with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in 2017 questioned him regarding the relationship he had developed with the individual. In a repeated string of false and misleading statements, Zhang denied knowing the foreign official.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations in 2020 interviewed Zhang regarding the matter. The DOJ says he repeated false assertions before eventually coming clean regarding the relationship and admitted to making false statements. Zhang conceded that he had attempted to obscure the truth due to him being fully aware that the relationship he and the Chinese official held was improper.
Zhang pleaded guilty to making false statements to authorities and now faces a maximum of five years in federal prison. He is awaiting sentencing by a federal district court judge.
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.