According to British media reports, a 33-year-old Chinese man is suspected of engaging in industrial espionage activities, including stealing COVID-19 vaccine research developed in the United States. He was wanted by U.S. authorities in 2023 and was arrested in Italy last week.
According to reports from multiple foreign media outlets, the man is Xu Zewei (phonetic), from Shanghai. He was apprehended last week after landing at Milan Malpensa Airport, thanks to an arrest warrant issued by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The reports state that the U.S. government has accused the man of being a member of a hacker group that attempted in 2020 to steal COVID-19 vaccine research being developed at the University of Texas. He is scheduled to appear for an extradition hearing in Milan on the 8th. His Italian defense lawyer, Giarda, declined to comment on the case.
The charges listed in the U.S. government's arrest warrant include wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and unauthorized access to protected computers to obtain information.