SAN FRANCISCO. A former Google engineer was hit with criminal charges alleging he stole trade secrets from the technology giant’s self-driving car project before he went to work at Uber.

Documents state that Anthony Levandowski downloaded thousands of files before leaving Google, including “critical engineering information”

If convicted on the charges, Anthony Levandowski faces up to 10 years in prison and a penalty of $2,50,000 per violation, according to federal prosecutors who announced the criminal indictment.