A federal case that was once framed as a national security win has quietly unraveled. Three Chinese research scholars at the University of Michigan — accused of helping a colleague smuggle biological materials into the United States — are now back in China after the Justice Department abruptly dropped charges against them. Defense lawyers say China’s government stepped in behind the scenes, according to the Associated Press.
The materials at the center of the case turned out to be mostly tiny, transparent worms. Authorities had initially described the arrests last year as a matter of national security. Attorney General Pam Bondi, then, said the US must remain vigilant when foreign nationals attempt to advance a malicious agenda.
But defense attorneys insist there was nothing dangerous involved.
CHARGES SUDDENLY DISMISSED
Xu Bai and Fengfan Zhang were accused of conspiring to assist another scientist who shipped packages from China before arriving in 2025 for temporary lab research at the University of Michigan. A third researcher, Zhiyong Zhang, was charged with making false statements to federal authorities, the Associated Press reported.
All three were jailed for more than three months while the case moved through federal court in Detroit.
On February 5, a judge dismissed the charges at the request of the Justice Department. The decision came without warning. Soon after, the three scholars returned to China.
The US Attorney’s Office in Detroit declined to comment on China’s role in the dismissal or why prosecutors reversed course. An email sent Wednesday to the Chinese Consulate in Chicago seeking comment was not immediately answered.
DEFENSE POINTS TO DIPLOMATIC INTERVENTION
“The dismissal came as a pleasant surprise,” defense lawyer John Minock said. “We don’t know the details. What we were told was there was some kind of intervention by the Chinese Consulate in Chicago.”
Another attorney, Ray Cassar, said the defense team had been negotiating a misdemeanor plea deal when the case was suddenly dropped.
“We get this phone call saying China is negotiating with the US over these three students. Serious talks,” Cassar said. “These were kids studying for their Ph.D.s. The last thing you want to do is destroy their careers. … Was it the proper thing to do? Absolutely.”
Bai, Zhang and Zhang had been admitted to the US as temporary research scholars at the university.
THE WORMS AT THE CENTER OF THE CASE
Cassar said the biological materials were short-lived worms commonly used in research. According to him, the packages were not properly labeled because Chengxuan Han — the scientist who sent them — likely wanted to avoid delays from US inspectors.
“There was no intention of doing anything nefarious,” Cassar said. “The worms have been consistently used for studying chemical reactions, light sensitivity.”
In September, Han pleaded no contest to smuggling and making false statements. She spent three months in jail before being deported to China.
In a separate case, another temporary researcher, Yunqing Jian, pleaded guilty to similar charges involving a common plant fungus. She was deported after five months in custody.
With inputs from Associated Press
