Drone photographer pleads guilty to Espionage Act charges

A overseas postgraduate pupil has pleaded blameworthy to crimes nether the Espionage Act for photographing classified US Navy ships with a drone. The lawsuit appears to beryllium a first-of-its benignant prosecution by the Department of Justice. 

Fengyun Shi, a Chinese national and postgraduate pupil astatine the University of Minnesota, was arrested successful January aft a drone helium was flying got stuck successful a histrion successful Newport News, Virginia. A suspicious nonmigratory called the constabulary and Shi was questioned earlier abandoning the drone and fleeing. After the FBI seized the drone and pulled the images disconnected it, investigators discovered that Shi had photographed Navy vessels astatine aggregate shipyards successful Virginia. One of those shipyards, successful Newport News, was actively manufacturing next-generation craft carriers and atomic submarines. Both of these types of vessels incorporate classified components. 

Shi was charged with six misdemeanors nether the Espionage Act. It appears to be, nationalist information instrumentality adept Emily Berman previously told me, the archetypal known prosecution nether a WWII-era statute banning the usage of craft to photograph delicate subject sites.

On Monday, Shi pleaded blameworthy to 2 counts of violating that statute. Specifically, for photographing vessels astatine the shipyard successful Newport News. Each discourtesy whitethorn effect successful up to a twelvemonth successful prison, a $100,000 fine, and different twelvemonth of supervised release, but prosecutors enactment that helium could person a heavier condemnation that a higher tribunal whitethorn reappraisal for reasonableness. The plea statement besides explains that Shi could beryllium deported, but that helium tin use for asylum if helium believes helium volition beryllium taxable to torture successful China. 

The connection of facts accompanying Shi’s plea statement contains caller information. For example, it reveals that Shi purchased the drone 1 time earlier flying to Virginia from San Francisco. There is nary mentation fixed for wherefore helium was successful San Francisco. According to the statement, Shi lone flew the drone astir the shipyards and did not instrumentality immoderate photos that did not incorporate US Navy vessels. Finally, it says that Shi was arrested trying to committee a one-way formation to China from California. 

There are galore unknowns surrounding Shi’s strikingly caller prosecution, including wherefore the DOJ pursued it successful the archetypal place. Despite the lawsuit taking spot amid rising tensions betwixt the US and China, Shi has not been accused of acting arsenic a spy; his lone transgression was taking photos with a drone. Berman antecedently said that his lawsuit could adjacent rise important First Amendment issues. 

Court documents filed to day supply nary mentation for wherefore Shi took the photos, though the plea statement states that Shi acknowledges helium had nary “innocent reason” for doing so. Even radical astir Shi seemed baffled by the case. I antecedently spoke to a workfellow from the University of Minnesota who was amazed to larn that Shi was adjacent inactive successful the US, adding that he’d efficaciously abandoned his studies months anterior to his arrest. 

The DOJ declined to comment, and Shi’s lawyer did not respond to a request. Shi present awaits sentencing.