NEW YORK, March 19 (Reuters) - A Canadian resident of

China has been arrested in the United States for allegedly

stealing electric car manufacturer Tesla's trade

secrets and conspiring to sell them to undercover law

enforcement officers.

Klaus Pflugbeil, the operator of a China-based business that

sells technology used in electric vehicles, was arrested on

Tuesday in New York, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said.

He had traveled for a meeting with undercover agents whom he

had believed were Long Island businesspeople, prosecutors said.

Pflugbeil and business partner Yilong Shao built their

business using trade secrets belonging to "a leading U.S.-based

electric vehicle company," prosecutors said. Shao was also

charged but remained at large.

Prosecutors did not name the U.S.-based company, but said it

acquired a Canada-based manufacturer of battery assembly lines

in 2019. That matches the description of Tesla's acquisition of

a Canadian company named Hibar.

Both Pflugbeil and Shao are former employees of the Canadian

company, prosecutors said.

Pflugbeil was expected to make an initial appearance in

Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday afternoon, prosecutors said.

His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Shao could not be reached for comment.