Two men have been arrested and accused of scheming to smuggle military encryption technology to China, the US Customs Service said on Wednesday.
The technology, two devices known as KIV-7HS units, are used to encode classified government communications.
"The technology that these individuals were attempting to export to China is among the most sensitive items on the US munitions list," said Allan Doody, the Customs Service special agent in charge. Doody said sale of the technology must be approved by the National Security Agency.
Customs agents have arrested Eugene Hsu and Taiwanese-born David Yang. Carlson Ho, also charged with attempting to smuggle the technology, is in Singapore and has not been arrested. Ho is affiliated with the Singapore-based Wei Soon Loong Private Ltd, which intended to buy the technology, according to a federal affidavit.
The maximum sentence for smuggling sensitive technology is 10 years in prison and a US$1 million fine. Agents discovered the alleged scheme when Hsu contacted representatives of the company Mykotronx, a private defense contractor based in Maryland, seeking a price quote.
Yang confirmed on Aug. 24 to the customs undercover agent that the units would be shipped from Los Angeles through Taipei to Singapore, where Ho then was to forward the units to China, the agency said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
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