By Allison Lampert and Ismail Shakil
MONTREAL (Reuters) -A researcher charged with espionage in Canada for allegedly trying to steal trade secrets to benefit China was granted bail on Monday by a Canadian judge, according to representatives for both the defense and prosecutors.
Yuesheng Wang, 35, who worked as a battery materials researcher for Hydro-Quebec – Canada’s largest electricity producer – was arrested earlier this month and is facing four charges, including fraud, for obtaining trade secrets, and breach of trust by public officers.
Wang’s attorney Gary Martin said he was satisfied with the judge’s decision to grant his client bail. “We still have a lot of work to do,” he said.
Wang worked for a Hydro-Quebec research unit devoted to developing battery materials that has teamed up with others in the industry including the U.S. Army Research Laboratory.
He was fired this month after about six years at the provincially-owned firm and allegedly committed the crimes between January 2018 and October 2022.
Hydro-Quebec and the Public Prosecution Service of Canada both declined comment. A spokeswoman for prosecutors said Wang would next appear in court on Dec. 13.
(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
