Danish Autism Researcher Extradited After 14 Years on the Run Pleads Guilty to Stealing CDC Grant Money

ATLANTA - Poul Thorsen, a Danish researcher who was one of the U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General's top ten most wanted fugitives since 2011, pleaded guilty today to operating a wire fraud scheme that stole CDC grant money awarded for autism research overseas.

"Poul Thorsen ran a multi-year fraud scheme to cheat the CDC, diverting valuable federal grant money to service his greed and inflated lifestyle," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. "His fraud was especially reprehensible because he stole public funds that had been earmarked for research related to infant disabilities and birth defects. After evading justice for more than 14 years, Thorsen will finally be held accountable in a federal prison cell and ordered to pay full restitution to the CDC."

"Today's guilty plea represents an important step toward holding accountable those who steal taxpayer dollars intended to advance critical public health research," said Kelly Blackmon, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). "HHS-OIG remains committed to protecting HHS program funds, and we will continue to pursue anyone who attempts to exploit these resources for personal gain."

According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: From 2000 to 2009, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, awarded over $11 million in grants to two Danish governmental agencies to study the relationship between autism and exposure to vaccines, between cerebral palsy and infection during pregnancy, and between childhood development and fetal alcohol exposure. In 2002, Thorsen, who had worked as a visiting scientist at the CDC when it solicited the grant applications, became the principal investigator responsible for administering the money awarded by the CDC.

While principal investigator, Thorsen systematically stole the CDC grant money by submitting fraudulent documents to the Danish government, to Aarhus University, and to Odense University Hospital, where scientists performed research under the grant. From February 2004 through June 2008, Thorsen submitted over a dozen fraudulent invoices, containing the forged signature of a CDC laboratory section chief, for reimbursement of expenses Thorsen claimed were incurred in connection with the CDC grant.

Based on the fraudulent invoices, Aarhus University transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars to credit union accounts the university believed belonged to the CDC. In truth, the credit union accounts were personal accounts held by Thorsen. After the money was transferred, Thorsen withdrew the fraudulent proceeds for his own use, obtaining dozens of cashier's checks and buying a home in Atlanta, a Harley Davidson motorcycle, and Audi and Honda vehicles. Thorsen also withdrew cash, paid off credit cards, and transferred fraudulent proceeds to other accounts. In total, he diverted and received more than $1 million of CDC grant money from Aarhus University and Odense University Hospital.

On September 1, 2026, Thorsen, 65, of Denmark, pleaded guilty to wire fraud. His sentencing is scheduled for December 1, 2026, at 11:00 am before U.S. District Judge J. P. Boulee.

On April 13, 2011, a federal magistrate judge issued an arrest warrant for Thorsen, but he evaded apprehension for over 14 years by remaining in Denmark. On June 4, 2025, Thorsen was arrested while traveling in Germany, and German authorities jailed Thorsen until he was extradited to the United States on May 7, 2026. Thorsen has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service without bail since then.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen H. McClain is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney's Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6185. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.