New Orleans residents Tai Shen Kuo and Yu Xin Kang, and Gregg William Bergersen of Alexandria, Virginia, were arrested for passing US defense secrets to China in one case, according to a Justice Department statement.

In a second case, former Boeing engineer Dongfan "Greg" Chung was arrested on charges involving stealing and turning over to China Boeing trade secrets, including information involving the space shuttle, the department said in a separate statement.

Kuo, 58, is accused of having worked under the direction of an unnamed Chinese official to obtain classified US defense information from Bergersen, 51, a Department of Defense employee, the Justice Department said.

"Much of the information pertained to US military sales to Taiwan," it said.

Kang, 33, a Chinese citizen resident in the United States, meanwhile was named as a "conduit of information" between Kuo and the Chinese official.

Kuo and Kang both face up to life in prison if convicted for the charge of criminal conspiracy to disclose national defense information to a foreign government.

Bergersen, a weapons systems policy analyst in the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in Arlington, Virigina, is charged with disclosing national defense information to unauthorized persons, which could bring up to 10 years in prison.

Chung, 72, a China native and naturalized US citizen living in Orange, California, was charged with economic espionage for taking secrets involving the shuttle, the C-17 military transport and the Delta IV rocket while he worked at Boeing and, before that, at US defense contractor Rockwell.

The US alleges he had received directives since as early as 1979 from individuals in China's aviation industry telling him to collect specific information.

"Chung allegedly obtained the materials for the benefit of the PRC (People's Republic of China)," the department said.

Chung was charged with eight counts of economic espionage -- each of which carries a maximum possible 15 year prison sentence and 500,000 dollar fine -- and six other related charges.

The Justice Department said the Chung case is linked to its investigation into California resident and engineer Chi Mak and members of his family, who were convicted last year for providing US defense articles to China.

"Mr. Chung is accused of stealing restricted technology that had been developed over many years by engineers who were sworn to protect their work product because it represented trade secrets," said US Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien.

"Disclosure of this information to outside entities like the PRC would compromise our national security," he said.

US Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein said the first case "has all the elements of a classic espionage operation."

"Today's prosecution demonstrates that foreign spying remains a serious threat in the post-Cold War world," he said.

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