Canadian man stole Tesla’s trade secrets, tried to sell them to government agents
Canadian citizen Klaus Pflugbel stole trade secrets of Tesla TSLA.O electric vehicle battery manufacturing and conspired to sell them to undercover government agents.
A Canadian resident living in China pleaded guilty in a New York federal court on Thursday to conspiring to steal trade secrets about Tesla TSLA.O electric vehicle battery manufacturing and sell them to undercover government agents, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
Klaus Plufgbil, 58, the operator of a China-based business selling technology used in electric vehicles, could face up to 10 years in prison for conspiring with his business partner, Yilong Shao, to sell Tesla secrets to FBI agents by posing as Long Island businessmen, the department said in a statement.
Neither Plugbeil’s lawyer nor Tesla representatives immediately responded to Reuters requests for comment. Shao, who was also charged but remains at large, could not be reached for comment.
“With his guilty plea, Pflugbeil is now being held accountable for this unlawful conduct that endangered our national security,” U.S. Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olson said in a statement.
Plugbeil, who is also a German citizen, was charged in New York in March. Prosecutors said Plugbeil and Shao built their EV battery business on trade secrets from “a major U.S. electric vehicle company.”
Prosecutors did not name the company, but said it acquired a Canada-based maker of battery-assembly lines in 2019, matching details of Tesla’s acquisition of Canadian company Hibber.
Thursday’s statement said both Pflugbeil and Shao worked for the Canadian company before Pflugbeil joined Shao’s business in 2020. The unnamed business now has locations in China, Canada, Germany and Brazil, making battery-assembly equipment similar to its previous employer, the DOJ said.
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