Mother of US navy sailor accused of spying urged him to work with China, court hears

Jinchao Wei's mother told her son providing information could help him get a job with Chinese government, prosecution says

The mother of a US navy sailor charged with providing sensitive military information to China encouraged him to cooperate with a Chinese intelligence officer, telling her son it might help him get a job with the Chinese government someday, the prosecution said on Tuesday.

The assistant US attorney Fred Sheppard made the accusation at a hearing in federal court in San Diego in urging the judge not to release Jinchao Wei, who was arrested last week on a rarely used espionage charge.