TRADE SECRET THEFT BY A FORMER APPLE ENGINEER IS PLEAD GUILTY

Tue 23 August 2022:

On Monday, Xiaolang Zhang, a former Apple employee accused of stealing computer files containing trade secrets from Apple’s secretive automobile division, pleaded guilty in federal court in San Jose.

Federal prosecutors in the United States allege that Xiaolang Zhang downloaded a circuit board design for Apple’s self-driving system after disclosing his intention to work for a Chinese self-driving vehicle firm and booking a last-minute travel to China.

He was apprehended after passing through a security checkpoint at the San Jose airport.

Zhang initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but according to court documents on Monday, he had reached a plea deal with prosecutors and changed his plea to guilty. The plea deal is sealed and sentencing is set for November.

Zhang’s plea agreement with the U.S. government is under seal, according to court filings on Monday. Zhang faces as much as 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine after pleading guilty to a felony charge of theft of trade secrets. Sentencing is scheduled for November.

Zhang’s lawyer confirmed the plea agreement but declined further comment. Apple and the US Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Jizhong Chen, the other former Apple engineer charged with trade secret theft, has pleaded not guilty. He has a court hearing set for August 29.

Apple first suspected Zhang of stealing trade secrets after he took paternity leave and traveled to China. When he came back to the company, he turned in his resignation, saying that he wanted to move back to China and take care of his mother, according to the 2018 complaint.

He told Apple that he planned to work for Xmotors, a leading Chinese electric vehicle company, and his access to Apple’s network was cut.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent