RCMP arrest Hamilton man accused of trying to give ‘sensitive’ Canadian documents to China

Kim Magi Staff Reporter Toronto Star

Zoe McKnight Staff Reporter Toronto Star

The RCMP arrested a 53-year-old Hamilton man on charges of trying to provide secret information to China in what they call a “threat to Canada.”

Police allege Qing Quentin Huang, who lives in the suburb of Waterdown, was trying to pass on sensitive details involving Canada’s national shipbuilding procurement strategy, which officials said could give foreign entities an unfair military, economic and competitive advantage.

The nearly $40 billion strategy involves building patrol ships, frigates, naval auxiliary vessels, science research vessels and ice breakers for the Canadian Navy and Coast Guard over three decades.

Police wouldn’t speculate on a potential motive, but said the act was not terrorism-related.

“The RCMP is not aware of any threat to public safety at this time,” said RCMP Chief Supt. Jennifer Strachan, criminal operations officer for Ontario. Huang is charged under the Security of Information Act with communicating with a foreign entity information the government is trying to safeguard.Filipino-Canadian community comes together in wake of typhoon

“It’s important to understand there is more to a national security investigations than focusing solely on terrorism,” said RCMP Chief Supt. Larry Tremblay, director general of the force’s federal policing criminal operations in Ottawa.

“It’s about protecting Canadian interests and taking the steps we need to take to protect our Canadian sovereignty.”

Huang, a naturalized Canadian citizen, is an employee of Lloyd’s Register, a global risk management and assessment company acting as a subcontractor to Irving Shipbuilding Inc. He had attempted to pass sensitive information to China through a contact at the Chinese embassy in Ottawa, police allege.

The accused has been employed as one of 20 marine engineers at the Burlington offices of Lloyd’s Register since April 2006, said Bud Streeter, vice president of marine management for the company’s Canadian operations, who said he was “shocked” by the allegations. The company is co-operating fully with the investigation, he said.

Huang’s title was structural design appraisal engineer and he was tasked with assessing ship designs for compliance with industry standards, Streeter said.

According to the Professional Engineers of Ontario database, Huang received a Master of Engineering in marine hydrodynamics from Huazhong (Central China) University of Science & Technology in 1985. He was licensed in Ontario in 2004.

Under the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy, which was announced in 2010, Lloyd’s Register is responsible for approval of designs for the combatant vessels that will be built by Irving Shipbuilding.

Huang did not have the security clearance required to access classified documents relating to warships and his duties were limited to assessing commercial vessels such as tugboats, passenger vessels and yachts. He would have knowledge of commercially confidential designs, Streeter said.

“He did not have any direct access or authorized access to classified information,” Streeter said. “But we would deal with information that could be client-confidential; information that, although it would not be classified, the Government of Canada would deem important.”

Streeter said he did not know whether Huang obtained classified documents through unauthorized means.

“That’s part of the evidence and I don’t want to speculate on that piece,” he said. He refused to comment on Huang’s personality or employment history, but said he has been suspended without pay.

Police first learned of the case on Thursday and arrested Huang on Saturday. The brief operation was dubbed Operation Seascape. Police said they do not anticipate other arrests.

The multi-agency investigation was co-ordinated by the Integrated National Security Enforcement Teams, which included RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police, Toronto Police and York Regional Police. The specialized teams can also include Canada Border Services and CSIS as well as other police forces.

Huang appeared in court Sunday and will be back in court on Wednesday for a bail hearing at Old City Hall. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

Federal public safety minister Steven Blaney praised the police team in a statement Sunday, saying “the safeguarding of sensitive information remains fundamental to protecting Canada's interests and national sovereignty.”