Former Federal Reserve Senior Adviser arrested, for leaking US trade secrets to China: Justice Department

Washington, DC [US], February 1 (ANI): John Harold Rogers, 63, of Vienna, Virginia, a former Senior Adviser for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors (FRB), was arrested on Friday on charges that he conspired to steal Federal Reserve trade secrets for the benefit of China, said US Department of Justice.
Further, the department stated that "In furtherance of the conspiracy, allegedly made false statements to the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (FRB-OIG), and those false statements had a material impact on its investigation."
Following the arrest, Devin DeBacker, head of the Justice Department's National Security Division affirmed that the "Justice Department will continue to use all the tools at its disposal to disrupt economic espionage and protect our national security."
"As alleged, the defendant violated the trust placed in him by the Federal Reserve Bank by putting US trade secrets in the hands of his China co-conspirators, knowing full well that such information would benefit the PRC Government and PRC instrumentalities," DeBacker added.
"President Trump tasks us with protecting our fellow Americans from all enemies, foreign and domestic. As alleged in the indictment, this defendant leveraged his position within the Federal Reserve to pass sensitive financial information to the Chinese government, a designated adversary," said US Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. for the District of Columbia. "Let this indictment serve as a warning to all who seek to betray or exploit the United States: law enforcement will find you and hold you accountable."
"As alleged in the indictment, Rogers betrayed his country while employed at the Federal Reserve by providing restricted US financial and economic information to Chinese government intelligence officers," said Assistant Director Kevin Vorndran of the FBI Counterintelligence Division. "This information could allow adversaries to illegally gain a strategic economic advantage at the expense of the U.S. This indictment sends a clear message that the FBI and our partners will hold accountable those who threaten our national security."
"The Chinese Communist Party has expanded its economic espionage campaign to target US government financial policies and trade secrets in an effort to undermine the United States and become the sole superpower," said Assistant Director in Charge David Sundberg of the FBI Washington Field Office. "Today's indictment represents the FBI's unwavering commitment to protect US national security interests and US jobs and bring to justice those who are willing to betray their country for personal gain."
"This indictment sends a clear message that those who deliberately misuse sensitive Federal Reserve information for their own personal gain and lie about it to investigators will be held accountable for their actions," said Special Agent in Charge John T. Perez of the FRB-OIG, Headquarters Operations.
According to the indictment, Rogers, a US citizen with a PhD in economics, worked as a Senior Adviser in FRB's Division of International Finance of the FRB from 2010 until 2021, where he was entrusted with confidential FRB information.
The confidential information that Rogers allegedly shared with his Chinese co-conspirators, who worked for the intelligence and security apparatus of China and who posed as graduate students at a Chinese university, is economically valuable when secret.
According to the US Justice Department, China holds a large amount of US foreign debt (approximately USD 816 billion as of October 2024). The data Rogers shared with his co-conspirators could allow China to manipulate the US market, in a manner similar to insider trading. Gaining advanced knowledge of US economic policy, including advanced knowledge of changes to the federal funds rate, could provide China with an advantage when selling or buying US bonds or securities, as per the US Department of Justice.
The indictment alleges that, from at least 2018, Rogers allegedly exploited his employment with the FRB by soliciting trade-secret information regarding proprietary economic data sets, deliberations about tariffs targeting China, briefing books for designated governors, and sensitive information about Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) deliberations and forthcoming announcements. He passed that information electronically to his personal email account, in violation of FRB policy, or printed it prior to travelling to China, in preparation for meetings with his co-conspirators.
Under the guise of teaching "classes," Rogers met with his co-conspirators in hotel rooms in China where he conveyed sensitive, trade-secret information that belonged to the FRB and the FOMC.
In 2023, Rogers was paid approximately USD 450,000 as a part-time professor at a Chinese university.
US Department of Justice stated that "on February 4, 2020, in response to questioning by the FRB-OIG, Rogers lied about his accessing and passage of sensitive information and his associations with his co-conspirators."
"Rogers is charged with conspiracy to commit economic espionage and with making false statements," it report added.
The FBI Washington Field Office and FRB-OIG are investigating the case.
Assistant US Attorney Kimberly Paschall for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorneys Nicholas Hunter and Steve Marzen of the National Security Division's Counterintelligence and Export Section are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. (ANI)