Posted on 03/07/2025 9:52:19 PM PST by ransomnote
Michael Charles Schena, 42, of Alexandria, Virginia, was arrested on criminal charges related to his alleged participation in a criminal conspiracy to gather, transmit, or lose national defense information.
According to court documents, Schena is employed by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) working out of DOS Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Schena held a top secret security clearance and had access to information up to the secret level within his DOS workspace. Beginning in or about April 2022, Schena allegedly communicated with people he met online through various communication platforms and provided them with information they were not authorized to receive. In return, Schena received payments. On Feb. 27, Schena allegedly used a cellphone to take images of multiple documents, which were displayed on the monitor of his classified computer and marked as “SECRET.” Schena then allegedly left work and returned to his home in Alexandria, where the cellphone was seized.
Schena is charged with conspiracy to gather, transmit, or lose national defense information and faces a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case with assistance from the FBI Richmond Field Office, the Department of Justice’s Office of Enforcement Operations, and the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service Office of Counterintelligence.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Ben’Ary and Gavin R. Tisdale for the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Maria Fedor of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Updated March 7, 2025TopicsNational SecurityCounterintelligenceComponentsPress Release Number: 25-237
South China Morning Post web site
US-China relations-—China Diplomacy
Army trio planned to share defence secrets with China; US Justice Department: Two of the men arrested in joint operation with FBI were on active duty while the third is no longer a serving soldier
Published: 1:56pm, 7 Mar 2025, scmp.com
Two active-duty and one former US Army soldier have been accused of conspiring to sell “sensitive” and “top secret” national defence information to China, according to a Justice Department statement.
Jian Zhao and Li Tian, who were stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, along with former soldier Asian Ruoyu Duan, were arrested on indictments from Oregon and Washington, the statement said.
“The defendants … are accused of betraying our country, actively working to weaken America’s defence capabilities, and empowering our adversaries in China,” said US Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “They will face swift, severe, and comprehensive justice.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said on social media that the arrests were carried out by the Federal Bureau of Investigation “along with our inter-agency partners”, under Bondi’s leadership.
Patel also emphasised in his social media post that the alleged actions of the accused amounted to a “betrayal of our country”.
The Justice Department said that between November 28, 2021 and December 19, 2024, Duan and Tian conspired to secretly gather sensitive military information on US operational capabilities, including technical manuals and other confidential materials.
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That is Bryan Kohberger, charged with the 13 Nov 2022 Idaho murders of four college students.
No.
Here’s his Linkedin, at least till it’s deleted:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-schena-640b744b
Charge him with treason - and remember....the Federal Death Penalty has been reinstated....
Bkmk
If they worked for military, even thru 3rd parties, charge them as enlisted and try in court martial. Outsourcing does not protect.
Yeppers
👍👍👍
No kidding, wrong pic.
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