Kentucky man sentenced to jail for illegal tech exports

The U.S. Justice Department said Louis Brothers of Covington, Ky., has been sentenced to 93 months in prison for illegally exporting sophisticated technology to China and concealing the unlawful proceeds.    The U.S. Justice Department said Louis Brothers of Covington, Ky., has been sentenced to 93 months in prison for illegally exporting sophisticated technology to China and concealing the unlawful proceeds.  
   The sentence also includes a monetary judgment of $1.1 million.
   Brothers, a former president and chief executive officer of Valley Forge Composite Technologies, pleaded guilty to the offenses in July 2015. He admitted that from 2009 to 2013, he unlawfully exported microcircuits to China, the Justice Department said.  
   Under federal law, anyone exporting a defense article, including microcircuits, to China must obtain the permission of the State Department.
   According to Brothers’ plea agreement, he intentionally avoided notifying the State Department about his activity and labeled his shipments as “computer parts” to conceal the true identity of the items, the department explained. He further admitted to investigators that he falsified paperwork to make it appear that the proceeds he received from his business with China were actually profits from a business he owned in Kentucky.