Couple accused of stealing GM hybrid info

A Troy couple was arraigned in federal court today on charges of conspiring to steal GM’s hybrid vehicle secrets to sell to a Chinese car company.

Yu Qin, 49, and his wife, Shanshan Du, 51, stood mute in U.S. District Court to a six-count indictment charging them with unauthorized possession of trade secrets, wire fraud, and obstruction of justice.

Magistrate Mark Randon entered not guilty pleas on their behalf and released them on $10,000 unsecured bonds.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Du, while working for GM, passed hybrid secrets to her husband for use in their company, Millennium Technology International, Inc. Some of the information was passed by e-mail.

After GM offered Du a buyout in January 2005, she copied thousands of pages of GM documents to a Millennium Technology external computer hard drive, prosecutors said.

Afterward, Qin moved forward with a venture to provide hybrid technology to Chery Automobile, a GM competitor in China, prosecutors said.

In May 2006, the couple drove to a dumpster behind a grocery store where Qin tossed plastic bags containing shredded documents that a federal grand jury had subpoenaed, authorities said.

They said the stolen documents, valued at more than $40 million by GM, never fell into Chinese hands.

The couple are Chinese immigrants and naturalized U.S. citizens, authorities said. Detroit Free Press