Senators want to block money to Singapore firm
In the search for truth about why a young American engineer with ties to Northwest Montana was found dead last year in Singapore, Montana Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester are hoping money — or the lack of it — talks.
The senators this week introduced a measure to block U.S. taxpayer dollars from going to the Institute of Micro Electronics, part of a Singapore state agency where American Shane Todd worked, until the U.S. Attorney General certifies the FBI has full access to all evidence and records relevant to Todd’s death.
The measure is an amendment to the continuing resolution to fund the government that is being debated on the Senate floor this week.
Todd, the son of Rick and Mary Todd of Marion, was found hanging from a bathroom door in his apartment last June — just days before he was scheduled to fly home to Montana — in what was deemed an apparent suicide by the Singapore police.
His parents allege he was murdered because his employers in Singapore were using him to help China get its hands on sensitive technology that could harm U.S. national security.
The Todds have relentlessly pushed for an investigation into their son’s death, and in recent weeks their efforts have gained momentum among U.S. government officials. Baucus and Tester have been working with the family to uncover answers in their son’s death.
On Tuesday Baucus met with Singaporean Minister for Foreign Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam in Baucus’ Washington office. Following his meeting with Baucus, Shanmugam committed publicly to “share all evidence with the FBI” and offered to conduct an audit of IME’s dealings with Chinese telecom giant Huawei Technologies, according to a press release from Baucus’ office.
“Singapore’s promise to share all evidence with the FBI is a significant step forward and I appreciate the minister’s time and attention to Shane’s case. Now we have to keep the pressure on to ensure that commitment is fulfilled,” Baucus said. “I made a promise to Shane’s parents, and a promise to myself, that I’ll do whatever it takes to get the answers they deserve. This amendment sends a clear signal of just how serious we are about getting to the bottom of Shane’s case.”
Tester agreed it’s time for Singapore to give the FBI full access in the investigation.
In 2010, IME received nearly $500,000 in sub-grants from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, an agency of the U.S. Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technologies for use by the military.
Todd, 31 at the time of his death, was heading a team developing advanced technologies based on gallium nitride, a semiconductor considered superior to silicon.
A small hard drive Rick and Mary Todd found at their son’s apartment — information inadvertently left behind by police who confiscated Shane’s computers, cellphone and diary — detailed plans for a project that involved the institute and Huawei Technologies. They said their son had confided that he was worried over the project and actually feared for his life.
The case now also has the attention of newly appointed Secretary of State John Kerry. Kerry met with Baucus last week and “has been fully briefed on what’s going on,” Rick Todd told Bloomberg, a leading business news agency.
The Singapore police have asked the FBI for assistance, but only to get the hard drive back from the Todds, along with a 2002 psychological report done on Shane while he was still in college and under extreme stress. The Todds won’t hand over the items until U.S. investigators are allowed to participate in the investigation.
The Todds moved to Marion to live full time two years ago but have long ties to that area. Rick, a pilot for American Airlines, had been coming to Marion since his father bought a ranch there when he was just a boy. The Todds spent their honeymoon at the Marion ranch and had long used it as a seasonal residence until relocating there in 2010.
Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.