US FBI chief: 2 Chinese citizens smuggled dangerous biological pathogen into US - "agro-terrorist weapon"
Kash Patel, head of the US FBI, says that 2 Chinese citizens are currently accused of smuggling a dangerous biological pathogen into the US.
One of the defendants is a research associate at the University of Michigan in the US.
According to the US Department of Justice, the Chinese defendant and her partner smuggled a highly toxic mushroom into a campus laboratory, ostensibly for research purposes.
Federal prosecutors say the pathogen is considered an agro-terrorist weapon that causes billions of dollars in global economic damage each year. The U.S. Department of Justice says the toxins released by the harmful fungus cause vomiting, liver damage and reproductive system defects in both humans and animals.
Court documents allege that the defendant received funding from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for her research and that information describing her loyalty to the CCP was found on her computer.
The FBI director added that the case is "a sobering reminder that the Chinese Communist Party continues to send agents and investigators to infiltrate our institutions and undermine our food supply."