For decades, American zoos have raised tens of millions of dollars from donors and sent the money to China for the right to host and display pandas.
Under U.S. law, those funds were required to be spent protecting pandas in the wild.
But the Chinese government instead spent millions on apartment buildings, roads, computers, museums and other expenses, records show.
The U.S. government, on three occasions, froze payments to China over incomplete record keeping, documents show.
But they worried that if Fish and Wildlife cut off the money altogether, China could demand the return of its bears.
Organizations:
U.S, Regulators, U.S . Fish, Wildlife Service
Locations:
China, U.S