A federal judge on Monday sentenced a retired U.S. Army helicopter pilot to nearly two years' imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to spying for China.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Miller handed Shapour Moinian, 67, of San Diego, Calif., the 20-month sentence on charges of acting as an agent of the Asian nation and accepting tens of thousands of dollars from representatives of the country in exchange for aviation-related information.
"This was industrial espionage, bordering on military espionage," Miller told Moinian during sentencing, according to a statement from the Justice Department. "These were extremely serious offenses against the United States."
Moinian served the U.S. Army in the United States, Germany and South Korea from 1977 to 2000, after which he worked for various defense contractors used by U.S. intelligence agencies and the military, which were permitted to projects involving classified information.
