The department says it has identified the pathogen as Fusarium graminearum, a fungus it said was classified in scientific literature as a potential a groterrorism weapon. In a statement it said that the fungus causes "headblight" in some crops and is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses globally each year.

According to an FBI criminal complaint, Zunyong Liu, 34, are searcher currently in China, brought the fungus into the US while visiting his girlfriend, Yunqing Jian, 33, in July 2024.

He admitted to smuggling in the fungus so he could conduct research on it at a University of Michigan laboratory where his girlfriend worked, according to the complaint.

--Reuters--