Engineer convicted of violating International Emergency Economic Powers Act

The Department of Justice said an electrical engineer has been found guilty of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and faces a maximum prison sentence of 219 years.

After a six-week trial, Yi-Chi Shih, 64, a part-time Los Angeles resident, was found guilty of conspiracy to violate the IEEPA by illegally obtaining integrated circuits with military applications that were later exported to China without the required export license.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Nicola T. Hanna for the Central District of California and Assistant Director in Charge Paul Delacourt of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office said a jury also found Shih guilty of mail fraud, wire fraud, subscribing to a false tax return, making false statements to a government agency and conspiracy to gain unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information.

“The Department’s China Initiative is focused on preventing and prosecuting thefts of American technology and intellectual property for the benefit of China,” Demers said. “The defendant has been found guilty of conspiring to export sensitive semiconductor chips with military applications to China. I would like to thank the prosecutors and agents, including those from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, for their efforts in this successful investigation and prosecution.”

Delacourt said the FBI is committed to protecting institutions from adversaries who seek to steal sensitive American technology under the guise of research.

“We will continue to work collaboratively with our federal partners to identify and hold accountable individuals who plunder our research or intellectual property at the expense of the American people and our national security,” he said.