Physicist Admits Passing Laser Secrets to Chinese Scientists
A Manhattan Beach physicist with access to sensitive nuclear intelligence pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to charges that he passed classified secrets to Chinese scientists during a 1985 visit to mainland China and lied to a government agency about his foreign dealings after another visit earlier this year.
The motive, authorities believe, was not money, but national loyalties.
Peter H. Lee, 58, “wanted to help the Chinese government and the Chinese scientists and to do something to advance what he considered to be a poorer, less technologically advanced scientific community,†said one law enforcement source.
“I would characterize [his motives] as an empathy and a sympathy for that country based on his ancestry,†the source said. “He seemed to be eager to help friends back there.â€
The Taiwanese-born Lee, who remains free on bond, faces up to 15 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 at his sentencing Feb. 23 before U.S. District Judge Terry J. Hatter in Los Angeles. His attorney did not return several calls seeking comment, and a woman at his home refused to speak with a reporter.
In the mid-1980s, Lee, considered an expert in laser energy, worked on U.S. government projects aimed at using lasers to simulate nuclear detonations.
In January 1985, while an employee at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, he traveled to China, authorities said. While there, Lee admitted in court Monday, he met with Chinese scientists and gave them detailed information about laser technology that he knew to be classified at that time, authorities said.
Much of the material has since been declassified, according to prosecutors.
Lee traveled again to China last May and spoke with scientific groups about his current work as a physicist at TRW Space and Electronics Group in Manhattan Beach. After returning, however, he submitted false and fraudulent information on a security form, denying that he had discussed technical information with the Chinese, officials said.
Chinese groups paid for Lee’s travel expenses, but it does not appear “that he was getting any big stacks of money†for his technical advice, a source said.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Jonathan S. Shapiro said Monday that “clearly law enforcement and the intelligence community are extremely interested in conducting a thorough damage assessment†to determine how the material may have been used by the Chinese.
“This is a significant, tangible example of a top scientist violating his oath to protect the nation’s secrets,†Shapiro said. “Even though it happened 12 years ago, it is and remains a serious crime.â€
U.S. State Department officials declined comment Monday on the Lee case.
Michael Campbell, a laser scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory who worked there with Lee years ago, said he was shocked to hear the news.
“He was a solid contributor, just a nice, quiet guy,†Campbell said. Lee’s neighbors in Manhattan Beach said they were equally surprised, describing Lee and his wife as quiet people who stayed to themselves while tending to two small dogs.
Lee has been cooperating with authorities, and he turned himself in voluntarily to enter his guilty pleas on Monday. Under an agreement with federal prosecutors, he was allowed to remain free after posting a $250,000 property bond and giving up his passport, officials said.
A TRW spokesman said that the firm is firing Lee and that it has been cooperating with the FBI.
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Times staff writer Alan Abrahamson contributed to this story.
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