Dec 16 (Reuters) - A German-Canadian resident of China

was sentenced to 24 months in prison in the U.S. for stealing

electric vehicle trade secrets from Tesla for his

competing EV battery business, the U.S. Department of Justice

said on Monday.

Klaus Pflugbeil, 59, pleaded guilty in June to conspiring

with business partner Yilong Shao to sell Tesla's battery

manufacturing secrets to undercover FBI agents posing as Long

Island businesspeople.

Pflugbeil's attorney and spokespeople for Tesla did not

immediately respond to requests for comment on the sentencing.

Shao, who was also charged but remains at large, could not be

reached for comment.

"In stealing trade secrets from an American electric vehicle

manufacturer to use in his own China-based company, Pflugbeil's

actions stood to benefit the (People's Republic of China) in a

critical industry with national security implications," U.S.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen said in a statement.

Pflugbeil, who is a citizen of Germany and Canada, was

charged in New York in March.

Prosecutors said he and Shao built their EV battery business

on trade secrets from a "leading U.S.-based electric vehicle

company." Prosecutors did not name the company, but said it

acquired a Canada-based manufacturer of battery-assembly lines

in 2019, which matches the description of Tesla's acquisition of

Canadian company Hibar.

The Justice Department said Pflugbeil and Shao worked for

the Canadian company before Pflugbeil joined Shao's business in

2020. Prosecutors said that Pflugbeil and Shao's venture has

locations in China, Canada, Germany and Brazil that make the

same battery assembly equipment as their previous employer.

Shao met the undercover agents at a trade show in Las Vegas

last year, according to prosecutors, after which Pflugbeil sent

them a business proposal containing Tesla's trade secrets.