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Chengxuan Han (Sanilac County photo)
Chengxuan Han, a Chinese scholar who had been invited to conduct research at the University of Michigan Lab, was sentenced Wednesday in federal court to time served—three months—on charges of smuggling biological materials into the U.S. and lying to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. She is expected to return to China and cannot return to the U.S.
In recent months, the feds have charged four Chinese nationals with ties to U-M.
“It is a privilege to study at one of our elite institutions,” said Detroit U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. “Aliens should not be abusing our hospitality by smuggling unknown biomaterials into America and then lying about it. The folks who keep us safe must know what aliens like the defendant are bringing into our country. And these convictions are a small but important step in that direction.”
Han, 28, a Chinese citizen, was pursuing a Ph.D. from the College of Life Science and Technology at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) in Wuhan, China, at the time of her arrest. As part of her studies, she had been invited to do research at U-M.
In 2024 and 2025, she sent multiple mislabeled packages containing biological materials to people affiliated with a laboratory at the University of Michigan, according to federal law enforcement documents filed in court.
After arriving on June 8 at McNamara Terminal at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on a flight from Shanghai, she was questioned by authorities about the packages she had sent to U-M. At first, she lied about the contents but later admitted they contained biological material related to roundworms, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged.
“While the criminal outcome could have been far worse for Ms. Han, she will be removed from
the U.S. and barred from reentry as the result of her actions,” said Marty C. Raybon, director of field operations for the Detroit U.S. Customs and Border Protection office in a statement. “This case serves as another example of the interagency effort put forth each day to protect our homeland from a growing number of threats from beyond our borders.”
