Belgian prosecutors detain former reasearcher and probe alleged Chinese espionage at bankrupt chipmaker

Belgian Prosecutors Detain Former Reasearcher

Poinews.com – Belgian prosecutors detain former reasearcher and probe alleged Chinese espionage at a bankrupt chipmaker. A 52-year-old Chinese-Belgian national was taken into custody in May while preparing to board a commercial flight to Beijing. Authorities kept the detention quiet for months before the Federal Prosecutor’s Office made it public, revealing charges spanning espionage, membership in a criminal organisation, misappropriation of corporate assets, and unauthorised release of trade secrets. The case centres on BELGAN BV, a Belgian semiconductor firm that collapsed into bankruptcy in 2024 and left roughly 400 workers without employment.

The Company at the Centre of the Case

BELGAN had been developing what it described as a next-generation line of gallium nitride (GaN) chips — wide-bandgap semiconductor components increasingly critical to electric-vehicle power electronics, aerospace systems, and defence platforms. Before its liquidation, the company was partially acquired by investors based in Hong Kong with Chinese ties. Those investors placed their own managers inside the Belgian operation and, according to investigators, funneled sensitive licences and proprietary technologies to a parallel entity they established in China called GaNkool, which pursued a closely aligned manufacturing focus.

The detained individual occupied a senior research role at BELGAN during the period in question while simultaneously serving as a director of the Chinese-linked company, which was bankrolled by a Chinese investment fund. Investigators say the overlap of positions created conditions under which specialised know-how could cross borders without proper authorisation.

“The investigation may point to the unlawful transfer abroad of specialised intellectual property and trade secrets relating to the production of gallium nitride chips,” the Federal Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.

What Investigators Are Pursuing

The Federal Prosecutor’s Office confirmed to journalists that a second suspect remains at large and is actively sought. Searches have been conducted at multiple locations, and data-storage devices were seized for forensic examination. Belgian public broadcaster RTBF reported that the man has denied the charges brought against him.

A separate inquiry into the circumstances surrounding BELGAN’s 2024 insolvency was already underway before the espionage allegations surfaced. The bankruptcy — which wiped out hundreds of jobs in a sector the country has tried to cultivate as part of its post-pandemic industrial strategy — now appears intertwined with questions of foreign influence and intellectual-property leakage.

Why Gallium Nitride Matters

GaN chips operate at higher voltages and frequencies than conventional silicon devices, making them attractive for fast-charging infrastructure in electric vehicles, radar and communications arrays in aerospace, and compact power converters in military hardware. Europe has invested heavily in GaN and related wide-bandgap research through programmes such as the European Chips Act and national semiconductor funds, precisely because the technology sits at the intersection of civilian mobility and defence capability. A confirmed siphon of Belgian-developed GaN know-how into a Chinese-controlled entity would carry implications well beyond one bankrupt firm.

Frequently Asked Questions

What charges does the detained individual face? The Federal Prosecutor’s Office lists espionage, membership in a criminal organisation, misappropriation of corporate assets, and unauthorised release of trade secrets. The man has publicly denied all charges.

What is gallium nitride and why is it strategically important? GaN is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material used in high-power, high-frequency applications including EV chargers, aerospace radar, and military power converters. Because Europe is investing billions to build domestic GaN supply chains, any unauthorised transfer of Belgian-developed designs to a foreign entity is treated as a national-security matter.

Is this case part of a broader European trend? Yes. In recent months, multiple European jurisdictions have opened or concluded investigations into alleged Chinese espionage touching technology, defence, and political spheres — including arrests at NATO’s SHAPE headquarters in Mons, a five-year prison sentence for a former European Parliament aide, and convictions in the United Kingdom for surveillance of exiled Hong Kong dissidents.