Wednesday, April 3, 2013

CFIA researchers face criminal charges


Two award-winning researchers with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency face criminal charges for allegedly trying to smuggle brucella materials to China.

Dr. Klaus Nielsen was arrested at the Ottawa International Airport where officers were accompanied by firefighters skilled in dealing with hazardous materials.

Ms. Wei Ling Yu is believed to be in China.

The RCMP arrested Nielsen last October, but withheld that information until this week. He was on his way to China.

Nielsen was one of six CFIA researchers who developed a faster test for brucellosis and won a Technology Transfer Award in 2003.

Seventeen vials of pathogen — live brucella bacteria that can infect livestock and humans — were found while searching Nielsen, RCMP allege.
He was arrested for breach of trust by a public officer and the unsafe transportation of a human pathogen.
He also faces several charges under the Export and Import Permits Act, the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act and the Human Pathogens and Toxins Act.
He is due for his second court appearance on April 17.