Defendant sentenced to prison for stealing aircraft trade secrets now faces charges for lying

SAVANNAH, GA:  A North Carolina man who took part in a conspiracy to steal design information from aircraft companies faces additional prison time after his indictment for lying to the court while being sentenced and for lying to the FBI.

Craig German, 59, of Kernersville, N.C., was indicted by a grand jury in U.S. District Court on charges of Perjury and False Statements to a Government Agency, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. If found guilty, the charges could add up to five years to German’s current sentence of 70 months in federal prison, handed down in February after his guilty plea on a charge of Conspiracy to Steal Trade Secrets.

“It’s against the law for any person to lie while under oath, but it’s even more disturbing when that person lies after promising to cooperate in an investigation,” said U.S. Attorney Christine.  

According to court documents and testimony, German admitted that he and his co-conspirators agreed to steal trade secrets from aircraft companies in order to assist a competitor company in developing their own anti-ice aircraft technology. After pleading guilty, German voluntarily met with the FBI in an effort to cooperate, but falsely denied copying, taking or otherwise transferring numerous trade secret documents. At the sentencing hearing, testimony showed that German had, in fact, copied the trade secret documents onto a removable USB drive.  German elected to testify at the hearing and falsely testified that he was directed by a supervisor to copy and move the trade secret files.

“It is alleged that this defendant promised to fully cooperate truthfully, but instead chose to lie about his involvement in a conspiracy to steal trade secrets,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “That type of behavior will not deter us from pursuing the truth and seeking justice for our citizens.” 

Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer G. Solari and Steven H. Lee.