Ex-ISU scientist seeks mercy in AIDS-vaccine fraud case

A disgraced former Iowa State University scientist is asking a federal judge for mercy when deciding this week whether to send him to prison for scientific fraud.

Dong-Pyou Han pleaded guilty in February to faking results in AIDS-vaccine experiments. Prosecutors say his actions led federal administrators to award an extra $7 million to $20 million in grants for the research, and they want him to serve prison time for his actions.

Han, 58, was forced to resign from ISU after his deception was uncovered by other researchers in 2013. He could face nearly six years in prison under federal guidelines when he's sentenced Wednesday, defense lawyer Joseph Herrold wrote in papers filed Monday. But Herrold asked that Han be sentenced to less time, or even to probation, for what he described as an isolated example of weakness and poor judgment. "This case is about human failings," the lawyer wrote.

Han was indicted last June, and has been free while awaiting sentencing. The case is being watched nationally, because it is a rare example of a scientist being prosecuted for academic fraud.

Herrold wrote that the problem started when Han accidentally mixed a human blood component in with blood from rabbits that had been treated with the vaccine. The results falsely suggested the vaccine was helping the rabbits raise their defenses against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

"This led to incredible excitement within the research team," Herrold wrote. Han later discovered his mistake, but he then repeated it because he couldn't bring himself to disappoint his mentor, ISU biomedical professor Michael Cho, the lawyer wrote.

"He is deeply ashamed of his offense and regrets what he did," Herrold wrote. "…This is not an individual who is a pathological liar nor a con artist, but rather a man who got himself caught up in a lie that he was unable to confront. The lie in this case was inevitably going to be discovered. Dr. Han knew it would inevitably be discovered, and that its harm could only be mitigated if the research produced legitimate results as efforts continued, but still could not bring himself to reveal the truth to Dr. Cho, the research team, and his colleagues in the scientific community."

Federal prosecutors dispute the defense's characterization of the scientist's misdeeds. "Dr. Han's conduct was not a one-time mistake; if that were the case, he would not be in this position today," Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Scherle wrote in papers filed Monday. "Dr. Cho started receiving funding from the (National Institutes of Health) in 2008, and it is believed that approximately a year into the funding, Dr. Han started faking research. The deception continued until he was caught in 2013. While Dr. Han claims there was an accidental crosscontamination that caused the initial favorable data, he perpetuated the flawed data and went to a great deal of work to do so."

Scherle wrote that federal research administrators were "flabbergasted" by the supposed success of the experimental vaccine, which led them to increase the project's financing. She said the deception also caused the research team to focus on the specific vaccine, when they could have been looking into more promising areas.

Herrold, the defense lawyer, wrote that although Han knew the data was bogus, he gained no extra benefits or money from his actions. He said the scientist's only previous criminal infraction was a 2002 ticket for failure to wear a seat belt. Herrold wrote that Han, who grew up in South Korea, is likely to be ordered out of the United States. That would separate him from his two children, who are U.S. citizens, the lawyer wrote.

"He is deeply ashamed of himself, and of the shame he has brought on his family. He regrets the hurt he has caused to his friends and colleagues, the damage he has caused to government funded scientific research, and the pain he has caused any members of the public who had high hopes based on his falsehood."

According to the prosecution's filing, Han has agreed to be ordered to pay more than $7 million in restitution. It doesn't indicate where he would come up with such money. He is poor enough that he qualified for a public defender.

After the fraud was discovered, ISU had to repay $496,000 to the federal government. Federal officials also canceled $1.4 million in grants that had not yet been paid.