FBI searches homes of Indiana U. cybersecurity Prof. XiaoFeng Wang and wife, seizes boxes

FBI searches homes of Indiana U. cybersecurity Prof. XiaoFeng Wang and wife, seizes boxes


Pedestrians on the campus of Indiana University Bloomington in Bloomington, Indiana, US, on Sunday, April 7, 2024. 

Chet Strange | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Video grabs of FBI raid at the home of Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering Associate Dean for Research, XiaoFeng Wang.

Source: 13WTHR NBC Affiliate

An Indiana U. spokesman responded to questions from CNBC Monday about the couple’s employment status with, “I’ll refer you to the FBI for any information.”

An FBI spokeswoman said, “I can confirm the FBI executed federal search warrants at homes in Carmel and Bloomington Friday.”

“We have no further comment at this time,” the spokeswoman said.

There is no record of any federal criminal case against either Wang or Ma.

Wang, who has been at Indiana U. for two decades, has been the associate dean for research at the Luddy School, according to an archived profile page.

Read more CNBC politics coverage

That page notes that his work has been funded by multiple federal agencies and that he has been the principal investigator for research projects totaling nearly $23 million.

“Dr. Wang’s research focuses on system security and data privacy with a specialization on security and privacy issues in mobile and cloud computing, and privacy issues in dissemination and computation of human genomic data,” notes a Luddy School page that was still online as of Monday.

The couple did not immediately reply to a message from CNBC requesting comment.

CNBC has also requested comment from Jackie Bennett Jr., an Indianapolis criminal defense lawyer. Bennett was seen arriving at the Carmel, Indiana, home Friday with a woman believed to be Ma.

FBI agents, assisted by Department of Homeland Security agents, searched the residence for over four hours and removed boxes containing unknown items.

Video grab shows a woman returning home with her lawyer after an FBI raid at the home of Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering Associate Dean for Research, XiaoFeng Wang.

Source: 13WTHR NBC Affiliate

Video obtained by WTHR-TV of the FBI search at the Carmel residence also shows an agent snatching a phone from the woman believed to be Ma, as she stood in front of the home.

While the Carmel search was being conducted, FBI agents also searched the Bloomington home owned by Wang and Ma, who is a systems analysts and program in Indiana University’s library division. Indiana U. is located in Bloomington, about 70 miles southwest of Carmel.

Bennett, the attorney, is a former federal prosecutor who served in the office of Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr from 1995 to 1999, when Starr was conducting a criminal investigation of then-President Bill Clinton.

Bennett questioned Clinton during the president’s testimony before a grand jury regarding his sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

Video grabs of FBI raid at the home of Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering Associate Dean for Research, XiaoFeng Wang.

Source: 13WTHR NBC Affiliate



Source

Woman pleads guilty in M scam that sold access to Trump fundraiser, fake U.S. residency
Politics

Woman pleads guilty in $30M scam that sold access to Trump fundraiser, fake U.S. residency

The complaint and affidavit in support of an arrest warrant against Sherry Xue Li and Lianbo “Mike” Wang is photographed on Monday, July 18, 2022. Department of Justice | AP A New York woman pleaded guilty Wednesday in connection with a years-long $30 million investment scam that, among other things, sold foreign nationals access to […]

Read More
Trump imposes universal 50% tariff on copper imports, White House says
Politics

Trump imposes universal 50% tariff on copper imports, White House says

Copper pipes are displayed in a home rebuilding store on July 9, 2025 in New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed on order imposing a universal 50% tariff on copper imports, the latest metal he has targeted with a steep import tax. The new, higher copper tariffs go […]

Read More
U.S. sanctions Brazilian judge targeted by Trump over Bolsonaro case
Politics

U.S. sanctions Brazilian judge targeted by Trump over Bolsonaro case

The Minister of the Supreme Court of Brazil, Alexandre de Moraes, participates in the plenary session of the Supreme Court (STF) in Brazil on Feb. 20, 2025, after the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) indicts the former president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, for plotting a coup d’etat in 2023.  Ton Molina | Nurphoto | Getty Images […]

Read More