The Tianjin University Alumni Association is calling for public donations for professor Zhang Hao, who was arrested by the US for economic espionage last month, as his family is in need of money to employ a defense lawyer.

According to the official Weibo account of Tianjin University, Zhang is currently in prison and is facing economic espionage charges.

"According to US law, Zhang Hao must find a suitable legal team in order to defend his own interests through legal means and prove that he is innocent. However, legal fees are costly and are unaffordable for Zhang's family who are from a village, and earn ordinary wages," read a statement published over the weekend by the association.

The alumni association said they received a letter from Zhang's wife on Wednesday in which she expressed her financial concerns. Zhang's wife wrote in the letter that a legal firm told the family they would likely need 20 to 35 million yuan ($3.2 to $5.6 million) to fight the case.

She said Zhang has been charged with 30 separate offences and if convicted, he would face a sentence of 10 to 15 years. "Zhang is innocent," she stressed.

On May 16, Zhang was arrested when he landed at Los Angeles International Airport at the invitation of an international academic meeting which was reportedly a ploy concocted by the FBI to capture him.

Zhang, along with another suspect, Pang Wei, who is also a professor at Tianjin University, gained their doctorates in the US and worked for different American companies until 2009, when they went back to China to assume teaching posts and later launched a joint-stock company with Tianjin University. According to their indictment, they had stolen communication technologies that have military applications back to China, which is an act of "espionage."

According to The New York Times, a total of six suspects were arrested for stealing microelectronic designs from American companies on behalf of the Chinese government.

The Chinese government on May 20 expressed its deep concern about the matter and said that it is seeking more details about the case. "The Chinese government will ensure that the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens in China-US personnel exchanges will not be hurt," Hong Lei, a foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Newspaper headline: University calls for cash for arrested professor