A US Army analyst, Sgt Korbein Schultz, has been apprehended and charged with the illicit sale of sensitive military information to a contact in China.
The arrest, which took place at Fort Campbell in Kentucky on Thursday, followed an extensive investigation conducted by the FBI and US Army counterintelligence.
According to the charges filed, Sgt Schultz allegedly received $42,000 (£33,000) in exchange for providing dozens of classified security records. The criminal conspiracy is reported to have commenced in June 2022 and persisted until his apprehension.
Sgt Schultz faces multiple charges, including conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information, exporting technical data related to defence articles without a license, conspiracy to export defence articles without a license, and bribery of a public official. At present, it remains unclear whether he has retained legal representation to comment on the charges against him.
Larissa Knapp of the FBI’s National Security Branch expressed grave concern, stating, “The conduct alleged in today’s indictment represents a grave betrayal of the oath sworn to defend our country. Instead of safeguarding national defence information, the defendant conspired with a foreign national to sell it, potentially endangering our national security.”
The confidential documents Schultz provided were allegedly handed over to a contact believed to be residing in Hong Kong. Among the sensitive information disclosed were details regarding hypersonic equipment, studies on the future development of US military forces, and a document outlining China’s military preparedness.
While the justice department charging documents do not explicitly implicate the Chinese government or identify the contact who paid Schultz, the indictment specifies that he was instructed to transmit “original and exclusive documents” to his contact.
The intelligence shared by Schultz encompassed information related to Russia’s war in Ukraine, the “operability of sensitive US military systems and their capabilities,” as well as US plans concerning Taiwan in the event of an attack.
Sgt Schultz’s messages, as detailed in the indictment, include a reference to wishing he could be “Jason Bourne,” a fictional spy character. In another message, he expressed anticipation of receiving additional funds from his handler, stating, “I hope so! I need to get my other BMW back!”
This incident follows the recent arrest of a retired US Army colonel in Nebraska, accused of sending classified information through a foreign dating website. Additionally, a US airman from the Massachusetts Air National Guard pleaded guilty earlier this week to six counts of illegally retaining and transmitting national defence information. The arrests underscore the heightened concerns surrounding the security of classified military information within the US armed forces.
Ozioma Samuel-Ugwuezi
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