Chinese National from Wuhan pleads no contest to smuggling bio materials for work at U-M lab
FOX 2 - A Chinese National and University of Michigan lab worker is facing up to 25 years in prison after pleaded no contest to smuggling biological materials into the US via Detroit Metro Airport.
The backstory:
Chengxuan Han, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, pleaded no contest to three smuggling charges and to making false statements to U.S. Custom and Border Protection officers on Tuesday.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2025. A conviction for smuggling goods into the United States carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A conviction for making false statements carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison.
According to court documents, the packages were addressed to individuals associated with a laboratory at the University of Michigan.
On June 8, 2025, Han arrived at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on a J1 visa. Customs and Border Protection officers conducted an inspection of Han, during which Han made false statements about the packages and the biological materials she had previously shipped to the United States.
CBP officers also found that the content of Han’s electronic device had been deleted three days prior to her arrival in the United States.
At the conclusion of the border inspection, Han was interviewed by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and ICE HSI.
Related:
- Second Chinese National charged with smuggling biological materials into US at Metro Airport
- Feds investigate University of Michigan amid alleged Chinese bio material smuggling cases
During this interview, Han admitted to sending the packages, admitted that the packages contained biological material related to round worms, and admitted to making false statements to the CBP officers during her inspection.
"This alien from Wuhan, China smuggled round worms and other biomaterials into our country on three separate occasions to circumvent our border protections," said United States Attorney Gorgon. "One of those times, she wrote that she was sending ‘a fun letter.’
"The University of Michigan invited this Chinese national into our state to be a visiting scholar where it was going to give her more than $41,000 in a year to do her worm research at the Life Sciences Institute. Something is wrong in Ann Arbor."
Han is currently pursuing a Ph.D. from the College of Life Science and Technology in the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China.
"Anyone who attempts to smuggle biological materials into our country not only puts themselves at risk but also endangers public safety and our national security." said Reuben Coleman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office.
The Source: Information for this story is from the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan and previous reports.