Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Federal contractor charged with sending classified US information to Ethiopia
CNN via KRDO ^ | 9-21-23 | Hannah Rabinowitz and Holmes Lybrand

Posted on 09/22/2023 9:39:19 AM PDT by dynachrome

A federal contractor who worked for State and Justice departments has been charged with sending classified US information to Ethiopia, according to newly unsealed court documents.

Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, from Maryland, faces three charges, including gathering or delivering defense information to aid a foreign government and unauthorized possession of national defense information and willfully retaining it. His arrest last month was kept under seal until Thursday.

Lemma is a naturalized US citizen from Ethiopia, according to court documents. He has worked at various US government agencies since 2019 – including as a help desk technician at the State Department and as an analyst for the Justice Department.

The Justice Department’s inspector general, and the State Department’s security service are investigating the matter.

(Excerpt) Read more at krdo.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: classifiedinfo; ethiopia; fedcontractor
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-29 next last
What would ethiopia do with it except sell it onward to china or russia?
1 posted on 09/22/2023 9:39:19 AM PDT by dynachrome
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

STOP giving these FOREIGNERS GOVERNMENT JOBS! PSTUPID!


2 posted on 09/22/2023 9:42:15 AM PDT by Ann Archy (Abortion....... The HUMAN Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

Better methods of striking two rocks together to produce a sharp edge?


3 posted on 09/22/2023 9:44:07 AM PDT by DesertRhino (Dogs are called man's best friend. Moslems hate dogs. Add it up..)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Ann Archy

Right!

“Lemma is a naturalized US citizen from Ethiopia”.

Bring in a bunch of foreigners who have no alliegance to this country but came here to ‘better themselves’ in other words, get money and have no problems selling out this country FOR MONEY.


4 posted on 09/22/2023 9:44:24 AM PDT by Beowulf9
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Ann Archy

I worked fedciv for a while. You have no idea how many continental Africans are employed in the federal government. It blew me away.


5 posted on 09/22/2023 9:46:41 AM PDT by rarestia (“A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one.” -Hamilton)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

......”from Ethiopia”


6 posted on 09/22/2023 9:48:26 AM PDT by high info voter (Delivery )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: rarestia

Disgusting and DANGEROUS!


7 posted on 09/22/2023 9:52:26 AM PDT by Ann Archy (Abortion....... The HUMAN Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: All

“Diversity is our strength”......snx

Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, from Ethiopia living in Maryland, faces three charges
<><>gathering or delivering US defense info to aid a foreign govt—his homeland Ethiopia
<><>unauthorized possession of sensitive or classified US ntl defense info
<><>willfully retaining it for nefarious purposes.

Lemma is a (cough) “naturalized US citizen” from Ethiopia, according to court documents. He has worked at various US government agencies since 2019 – including as a help desk technician at the State Department and as an analyst for the Justice Department.


8 posted on 09/22/2023 9:59:29 AM PDT by Liz ( 2024 Dems will have the same guy with the same team around him, just older.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: All

news.yahoo.com

A US government contractor who worked at the State and Justice departments has been arrested on charges of spying, reportedly for Ethiopia.

Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, a naturalized US citizen of Ethiopian descent, was arrested August 24 and is charged with providing national defense information to a foreign government, the Justice Department said.

The criminal complaint against Lemma, a Silver Spring, Maryland, resident whose LinkedIn profile describes him as an IT systems and data analyst, was unsealed on Friday.

In a statement announcing Lemma’s arrest, the Justice Department did not name the country he was allegedly spying for, but it was identified by the New York Times and other US media outlets as Ethiopia.

According to an affidavit filed by an FBI investigator, Lemma carried out his highly paid espionage activities between December 2022 and August 2023, depositing tens of thousands of dollars in cash into bank accounts in the Washington region.

Lemma copied secret and top secret information from dozens of intelligence reports at the State Department and provided it to an “official associated with a foreign country’s intelligence service” via an encrypted messaging service.

The information included documents, photographs, notes and maps relating to what the affidavit called the “Relevant Country.”

The affidavit quoted a September 2022 exchange of messages in which the foreign official told Lemma “it’s time to continue (your) support,” to which he replied, “Roger that!”

“Lemma’s communications with the Foreign Official... included a discussion of military activities of a rebel group involved in an armed struggle against the government of the Relevant Country,” it said, believed to be a reference to the Tigray conflict.

In addition to working at the State Department, Lemma, who has held a top secret security clearance since 2020, also worked as a contract management analyst at the Justice Department.

Ethiopia is a major recipient of US aid; Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited there in March.

Lemma is charged with two counts of espionage and one of unlawfully retaining national defense information.

The espionage charges carry a potential death sentence while the retention charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

cl/nro


9 posted on 09/22/2023 10:05:26 AM PDT by Liz ( 2024 Dems will have the same guy with the same team around him, just older.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: All

Linked-in

Abraham Teklu Lemma
Data Analyst US Gov .Agency.
Washington, District of Columbia, United States
6 followers 4 connections

U.S. Department of State

University of Baltimore


10 posted on 09/22/2023 10:07:51 AM PDT by Liz ( 2024 Dems will have the same guy with the same team around him, just older.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

Why allow anyone from the Dark Continent to immigrate to the U.S.? I can think of no compelling reason. Note: this guy chose to be a scumbag government employee. That’s bad enough.


11 posted on 09/22/2023 10:09:53 AM PDT by ConservativeInPA (Vacate the chair. Shutter the government until it can be correctly defunded.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

the gov’t killed the fosenburgs on a charge of treason.

I would suggest the same.


12 posted on 09/22/2023 10:19:04 AM PDT by Terry L Smith
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome
Lemma is a naturalized US citizen from Ethiopia,

This is how empires work, and this is the whole point of globalism and open borders.

Maybe there will be a few unwanted consequences, but having mini-Ethiopias, mini-Venezuelas, mini-Indias inside the US government and its corporate cronies means you can always control, influence and manipulate these nations' societies and governments.

13 posted on 09/22/2023 10:28:13 AM PDT by PGR88
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

The decline of Ethiopia, from haile Selassie to hardly Selassie at all.


14 posted on 09/22/2023 10:28:42 AM PDT by chajin ("There is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

If the traitor has a “D” by his name he’ll be just fine. The DOJ, FBI and Homeland will line up to kiss his butt.


15 posted on 09/22/2023 10:31:09 AM PDT by GOPJ (President Trump: ‘How musch of a kickback does Crooked Joe Biden get?’ (ransom payment Iran))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Ann Archy

Indeed. They aren’t real Americans in my book.


16 posted on 09/22/2023 10:40:00 AM PDT by Gaffer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Beowulf9

Diversity is our strength /s


17 posted on 09/22/2023 10:44:19 AM PDT by j.havenfarm (22 years on Free Republic, 12/10/22! more then 6500 replies and still not shutting up!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Terry L Smith

Rosenbergs were never charged with treason. They were convicted of espionage.

Constitution makes it extremely hard to prove treason.


18 posted on 09/22/2023 10:54:15 AM PDT by jjotto ( Blessed are You LORD, who crushes enemies and subdues the wicked.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

How dare he!! Doesn’t he know the only ones allowed to share classified information with other countries, especially the Chi-coms, are the Clinton and Biden crime families.


19 posted on 09/22/2023 10:58:26 AM PDT by mass55th (“Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” ― John Wayne)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dynachrome

Selling classified intel ?
Looks like he is positioning himself for a cabinet position in the biden administration


20 posted on 09/22/2023 11:04:38 AM PDT by daku
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-29 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson