Newly produced electric vehicles are on display at the Tesla Shanghai Gigafactory on December 31, 2023 in Shanghai, China.
Cost Photo | Noor Photo | Getty Images
A Chinese-Canadian resident has been arrested in the United States on suspicion of stealing trade secrets from electric car maker Tesla and conspiring to sell them to undercover law enforcement officers.
Klaus Pflugbeil, the operator of a Chinese company selling electric vehicle technology, was arrested in New York on Tuesday, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said.
Prosecutors said he went to meet with undercover agents, whom he believed to be Long Island businessmen.
Prosecutors said Pflugbeil and business partner Shao Yilong used trade secrets belonging to “a leading U.S. electric vehicle company” to conduct business. Shao was also charged but remains at large.
Prosecutors did not name the U.S. company but said it acquired a Canadian battery assembly line manufacturer in 2019.This matches the description TeslaAcquired a Canadian company called Hibar.
Prosecutors say Pflugbeil and Shao are both former employees of the Canadian company.
Pfluger Bell is expected to make his first appearance in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday afternoon, prosecutors said. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Shao could not be reached for comment.
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