China scientist pleads guilty to stealing trade secret from Monsanto

Xiang Haitao admitted to stealing software developed by the agribusiness giant to take to China, says justice department

A Chinese national has pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal a trade secret from American agribusiness giant Monsanto, the US justice department said.

Xiang Haitao, 44, was employed as an imaging scientist by Monsanto and its subsidiary, The Climate Corporation, from 2008 to 2017, the department said in a statement.