By  Associated Press Reporter

PUBLISHED: 16:31 EST, 2  April 2013 |  UPDATED: 16:31 EST, 2 April 2013

A Medical College of Wisconsin researcher has  been charged with economic espionage after he stole samples of a possible  cancer-fighting compound and credited himself with its discovery in a grant  application to study in China, prosecutors said.

Hua Jun Zhao, 42, stole three vials of the  C-25 powder compound from the office of Marshall Anderson, a professor at the  college in suburban Milwaukee, with the intention of providing it to Zhejiang  University in China, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Zhao was a member Anderson’s team  researching whether the compound could help to kill cancer cells without damaging healthy ones, school spokeswoman Maureen Mack said.

Accused: Hua Jun Zhao, 42, (left) has been charged with  espionage after prosecutors say he stole details of a cancer-fighting compound  from professor Marshall Anderson (right) that he wanted to share with  China

It’s not clear how far along testing of the  compound is and whether it has been used only in the lab or been tested in  animals or people. Mack said rights to the compound are owned by the Medical  College of Wisconsin and the University of Cincinnati.

Anderson noticed the vials were missing Feb.  22. School security video showed Zhao was the only person who entered Anderson’s  office that day. Federal investigators questioned Zhao about the vials on Feb.  27, but he claimed he did not understand their questions, the complaint says.  The school immediately placed him on administrative leave.

Zhao’s co-workers told the FBI that Zhao  spoke excellent English and that he had lived in the U.S. for many years. Mack  declined to say how long Zhao worked at the school and would not provide details  of his immigration status, referring questions to the FBI. Messages seeking  comment were left Tuesday with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s  office.

Zhao’s wife lives in Zhejiang, according to  the criminal complaint.

The stolen vials are worth $8,000, the  complaint said.

Stolen: The professor noticed the vials were missing on  Feb. 22. School security video showed Zhao was the only person who entered  Anderson’s office

Zhao was arrested March 29 and charged with  economic espionage, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a  $500,000 fine. On Monday he was ordered held at Milwaukee County Jail until  trial. No trial date has been set.

Messages were left on Tuesday with Zhao’s  defense attorney, federal defender Juval Scott, and with  Anderson.

Zhao went to China in late December and  returned mid-February, and since then he has claimed on his resume that he’s an  assistant professor at Zhejiang University, the complaint says.

After he was placed on administrative leave  Zhao allowed the college to copy files from his personal laptop, a thumb drive  and an external hard drive. Investigators found 384 files related to Anderson’s  research, as well as research results from another professor from the school’s  cancer department.

Among the files was a grant application to a  Chinese foundation that Zhao wrote in Mandarin. In the application he said he  discovered the C-25 compound and that he was seeking funding to continue his  research in China. Anderson told investigators the application was a verbatim  translation of a grant application he himself had written several years earlier  in English.

School security staff told FBI agents that on  the day of his suspension Zhao also accessed school computers remotely and  deleted files related to the C-25 research. The college was able to recover the  files. Zhao denied accessing the server or deleting files and said he didn’t  understand the FBI agents’ questions.

Federal authorities subsequently searched  Zhao’s home and found a receipt for shipment of a package to Zhao’s wife along  with two airline tickets from Chicago to China leaving Tuesday, as well as an  application to the National Natural Science Foundation of China for research  funding for C-25.