(USNewsBreak.com) – The courts unsealed a 2022 indictment against a former US Marine Corps fighter pilot. In 2016, Prosecutors accused Daniel Duggan, an Australian citizen, of violating an arms control law and of conspiracy. He allegedly provided training to Chinese military pilots without seeking the proper credentials, teaching them how to land on aircraft carriers. On May 24, a judge in Sydney, Australia, ruled that the US could extradite Duggan to face those charges.
Australian authorities have held Duggan, who was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in custody since his arrest in October 2022 because the US classified him as an “extreme high-risk restricted inmate.” Prosecutors alleged that he conspired with others to train Chinese military pilots without applying for the necessary license to do so. He reportedly traveled to foreign countries, including South Africa and China, and received approximately 88,0000 AUD ($61,000) for his services. At the time, he was employed with Top Gun Tasmania, a flight experience company, and cited his 12 years of military experience in his credentials.
American ex-fighter pilot accused of illegally training Chinese aviators can be extradited to U.S., Australian judge says https://t.co/kkRRC0c9AT
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) May 24, 2024
According to the indictment reviewed by CBS News, federal authorities accused Duggan of providing “instruction on the tactics, techniques, and procedures” regarding how to launch from and land on naval aircraft carriers. Duggan’s lawyer said the former US Marine also unwittingly worked with Chinese hacker Su Bin. The two shared an address.
US intelligence officials gathered correspondence between the two, using that as evidence to charge Duggan with the crimes. In 2016, Su Bin, who went by other names including Stephen Subin and Stephen Su, pleaded guilty to conspiring to hack into US defense contractors’ networks to “steal sensitive military and export-controlled data” to send to China.
His legal team acknowledged they had no grounds to challenge the court ruling but said they would submit arguments to Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus explaining why Australia shouldn’t extradite Duggan to the US. The AG’s office says it will not comment on extradition matters.
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