US dials back probe of Chinese scientists on visa fraud charges

FBI files motions in federal courts to dismiss charges in five cases of Chinese researchers arrested on visa fraud charges last year.

A US Department of Justice programme aimed at protecting American technology from China dropped five prosecutions of Chinese scientists after a draft of an internal FBI analysis questioned a main premise for the investigations, according to court documents. The “China Initiative” had been criticised by civil liberties advocates as racially biased, and judges in several court proceedings had expressed scepticism about the FBI’s tactics in interrogating the scientists. On Thursday and Friday, the US government filed motions in federal courts to dismiss charges in five cases of Chinese researchers arrested on visa fraud charges last year.