 -- The FBI has arrested an American nuclear engineer in Delaware for allegedly spending the past two decades illegally helping China build nuclear material with expertise he gleaned from others inside the United States.

According to a federal indictment unsealed today in Tennessee, Allen Ho -- a naturalized U.S. citizen with residency in both Delaware and China -- worked with others inside the United States to help Chinese agencies develop and produce "special" material relating to nuclear reactors.

Under the direction of a Chinese government agency, Ho allegedly identified and recruited experts from the U.S. civil nuclear industry who could provide the technical assistance he sought -- often paying them for their help or arranging for them to travel to China, prosecutors say.

"China has the budget to spend," Ho allegedly told one of the experts he tried to recruit in 2009. "China will be able to design their Nuclear Instrumentation System independently and manufactur[e] them independently after the project is complete."

Specifically, Ho and others looked to obtain what the Justice Department calls "integral assistance" and "sensitive nuclear technology" relating to a "Small Modular Reactor Program" and an "Advanced Fuel Assembly Program" in China, and the group allegedly also sought help with nuclear reactor-related computer codes.

"Prosecuting those who seek to evade U.S. law by attaining sensitive nuclear technology for foreign nations is a top priority for [us]," the head of the Justice Department's National Security Division, John Carlin, said in a statement.

While operating his own technology firm based in Delaware, Ho has also been a senior adviser with China's largest nuclear power company, which specializes in the development and manufacture of nuclear reactors, according to prosecutors.

Charged with conspiracy to unlawfully engage and participate in the production and development of special nuclear material outside the United States, Ho could face life in prison if convicted.

"The arrest and indictment in this case send an important message to the U.S. nuclear community that foreign entities want the information you possess," FBI Executive Assistant Director Michael Steinbach said. "The federal government has regulations in place to oversee civil nuclear cooperation, and if those authorities are circumvented, this can result in significant damage to our national security."

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