Chinese researcher on US visa pleads guilty to smuggling E. coli into the country

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2026 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by LSEG. Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on FoxNews.com. A Chinese researcher was sentenced to more than four months in prison after pleading guilty to smuggling Escherichia coli (E. coli) into the United States, federal prosecutors announced Tuesday. Youhuang Xiang, 32, a former Indiana University postdoctoral researcher and Chinese national, admitted to concealing E. coli DNA in a shipment from China that was falsely labeled as women’s underwear, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana. Prosecutors said the FBI also uncovered evidence that Xiang was a member of the Chinese Communist Party and had lied about that affiliation to immigration authorities. Authorities said the case raises concerns about public safety and the integrity of federally funded research. "Such conduct poses a very se