Defendant in US spy case sentenced

A Chinese-born engineer convicted of conspiracy to export US defense technology to China was sentenced to 24 years and six months in US federal prison, AP reported. Chi Mak, a naturalized US citizen who worked for defense contractor Power Paragon, was also convicted of acting as an unregistered foreign agent, attempting to violate export control laws and making false statements to the FBI. Mak was arrested in late 2005 after FBI agents stopped his brother and sister-in-law from boarding flights to Hong Kong and Guangzhou carrying encrypted CDs containing documents about a submarine propulsion system, a solid-state power switch for ships and a presentation on the future of power electronics. Mak’s wife, brother, sister-in-law and their son have been convicted and sentenced on various charges.