In a notable legal case, a former engineer at Philips has been convicted for stealing trade secrets related to medical imaging technology. Chih-Yee Jen, aged 71, was found guilty of passing proprietary information to a Chinese competitor, specifically targeting the development of X-ray tubes.
Details of the Case
Jen worked at Philips’ facility in Aurora, Illinois, where he was involved in the research and development of X-ray tubes for the company’s computed tomography (CT) machines. He left the company on December 29, 2017, shortly after Philips announced plans to close the Aurora site, which affected approximately 200 jobs.
Following his departure, Jen began discussions with Xiaoqin Du, a vice president at Kunshan GuoLi Electronic Technology, in August 2017. Court documents reveal that Du sought Jen’s help to acquire Philips’ trade secrets for use in developing X-ray tubes for a subsidiary of Kunshan GuoLi, also located in Aurora.
Nature of the Stolen Information
Jen was accused of accessing and stealing four specific trade secrets from Philips, which included critical information such as manufacturing processes, component specifications, and annealing specifications. He joined the Chinese subsidiary, referred to as Company A in legal filings, in January 2018, where he utilized the stolen information to produce X-ray tubes.
Company A was sold to Kunshan Yiyuan in May 2018, which then marketed the X-ray tubes in China. Philips had previously required all employees to sign an Ethics and Intellectual Property Agreement, which prohibited the disclosure of proprietary information.
Legal Proceedings and Sentencing
Philips filed a civil lawsuit against Jen on April 19, 2019, claiming he continued to conceal trade secret information until July 2022. The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Andrew S. Boutros, emphasized the serious economic implications of such theft, stating it threatens the technological edge of the country.
Jen’s case included allegations that he assisted in recruiting other Philips engineers to aid in the theft. Two co-defendants, Fince Tendian and Vladimir Nevtonenko, both of whom had longstanding careers at Philips, pleaded guilty to their charges prior to Jen’s trial. Sentencing for all involved is scheduled between December 2026 and January 2027.
This article was produced by NeonPulse.today using human and AI-assisted editorial processes, based on publicly available information. Content may be edited for clarity and style.
