(NewsNation) — An alleged plot by two Chinese researchers to smuggle a crop-destroying fungus into the United States could have wide-ranging implications for America’s agriculture industry, according to an expert on homeland security and weapons of mass destruction.
Federal authorities say Yunqing Jian and Zunyong Liu conspired to bring Fusarium graminearum into the U.S. last year. Liu allegedly had baggies of the fungus when he flew to the U.S. and told officials he hoped to use it for research at a University of Michigan lab where Jian worked and where Liu previously worked.
Fusarium graminearum has been characterized as a “potential agroterrorism weapon,” according to the FBI.
“Had this gotten out into the wild, even by accident, the devastation it could have to our livestock and crops is just unmeasurable,” Donnell Harvin, a visiting scientist at Harvard University, told “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” on Wednesday.
What makes the case unusual, he said, is that Chinese operatives usually have tried to smuggle items out of the United States — not in. The alleged plot raises questions about whether others have been successful bringing harmful organisms here, Harvin said.
The charges against Jian and Liu come amid heightened tensions between China and the U.S. The Trump administration recently announced plans to restrict student visas for Chinese students.
Harvin, who also is a member of Georgetown University’s faculty, said most Chinese students here are trying to get an education.
“What we don’t need are Chinese assets … to come here with nefarious purposes,” he added.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.