WBRZ - Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE- A former Dow Chemical employee accused of selling trade secrets to China was under investigation by the feds for nearly a decade before he was indicted.

David Liou is accused of selling highly confidential information surrounding Dow's CPE, also known as Chlorinated Polyethylene. CPE is found in common things like vinyl siding and electrical lines. Liou allegedly received nearly $500,000 for the information. Federal prosecutors say he was almost netted two million dollars from companies in China, but never got that far.

During opening statements, Federal Prosecutors told the jury three men have already plead guilty to selling Dow's information to China. Prosecutors told jurors, those men would testify in this case against Liou.

Liou's Defense Attorney told jurors, his client never sold Dow's CPE. He said he has the evidence and documents to prove it.

"You see this box, I have 100 of them that relate to this case," Defense Attorney Frank Holtaus said.

At least one Dow employee and an FBI agent testified about the case. The Dow employee told the courtroom, the CPE plant closed in 2009 because it was no longer competitive.

Federal Judge Ralph Tyson told jurors yesterday, the trail will likely last three weeks. However, defense attorneys believe it could go as long as a month.