Belgium detains Chinese man on suspicion of semiconductor espionage

Prosecutors in Belgium said they have held a man with dual Chinese and Belgian nationality in pre-trial detention since May on suspicion of espionage in a case involving semiconductor technology.

The prosecutors said the 52-year-old man used to hold a senior position at Belgian microchip maker Belgan, a ⁠specialised producer of gallium nitride semiconductors which was declared bankrupt in July 2024.

The man was suspected of simultaneously acting as a director of a Chinese company that made the same kind of chips, which had been established only a few months after he joined Belgan and which was financed by a Chinese investment fund.

In that ⁠position he is suspected of illegally transferring specialised intellectual property and trade secrets abroad, all relating to the production of gallium nitride chips used in electric vehicles, aerospace and ⁠the military, the prosecutors said.

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The man lives in Belgium and was arrested in May at Zaventem airport where he was planning ⁠to take a flight to Beijing.

Prosecutors said the man remained in detention, and that a second suspect ⁠in the investigation remained at large.

The Chinese embassy in Belgium was not immediately available for comment.