OTTAWA—A judge has stayed criminal proceedings against a man accused of breaching Canada’s secrets law because of an unreasonable delay in bringing the matter to trial. Ontario Superior Court Justice Michael Dambrot delivered the ruling in a brief hearing today, ending Qing Quentin Huang’s long-running case unless the Crown decides to appeal. It has been eight years since Huang was arrested in Burlington, Ont., following an RCMP-led investigation called Project Seascape. Huang, an employee of Lloyd’s Register, a subcontractor to Irving Shipbuilding Inc., was charged under the Security of Information Act with attempting to communicate secrets to China. Police said the information related to elements of the federal shipbuilding strategy. In a statement through his lawyers, Huang says it’s a big relief that the case is over, adding he felt no one but his counsel was on his side.