A U.S. Army sergeant and intelligence analyst was arrested Thursday on six charges related to a conspiracy in which he allegedly traded military secrets to Hong Kong co-conspirators in exchange for cash, officials announced.
Corbein Schultz was arrested in Fort Campbell, Tennessee, following a federal grand jury indictment, the Department of Justice announced..
Schultz was charged with conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense information, exporting technical data related to defense articles without a license, conspiracy to export defense articles without a license, and bribery of a public official, Henry said. Leventis said. of United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.
U.S. prosecutors say Schultz worked with a Hong Kong-based co-conspirator who worked for an “overseas-based geopolitical consulting firm to disclose national defense documents, documents, plans, maps, notes, and photographs.” announced that he had done so. as national defense information that Mr. Schultz had reason to believe could be used to harm the United States or for foreign interests. ”
Prosecutors say the co-conspirators paid Schultz about $42,000 on 14 separate occasions for his work.
Mr. Schultz, who prosecutors said had “top secret classified information,” was scouted by his co-conspirators, who frequently requested classified material about the United States and its military, U.S. prosecutors said. the Bureau insisted.
Specifically, the co-conspirators were tasked with providing Mr. Schultz with classified information about weapons systems and information about the U.S. response in the event of a military attack by China against Taiwan — a security clearance. Prosecutors said this was the material he had access to.
The information Mr. Schultz provided included “documents on the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), information on hypersonic equipment, studies on the future development of the U.S. military, studies on major countries such as the People's Republic of China, and military planning. Contains an overview. training and operations,” the office said.
Additionally, over the course of the nearly two-year alleged conspiracy, Mr. Schultz shared three documents that violated the Arms Export Control Act. This includes Air Force tactical techniques and procedures for the HH-60W helicopter, F22-A fighter jet, and intercontinental ballistics. Prosecutors said it was a missile.
Schultz is scheduled to make his first appearance in Tennessee Central Court on Friday, Leventis said.
“Protecting national defense information is absolutely critical to the safety and security of our country. The unauthorized sale of such information violates national security laws, undermines our national security, and is unacceptable,” Leventis said. said.
It was not immediately clear whether an attorney has been appointed to represent Schultz. A representative for the public defender's office in the Middle District of Tennessee said it was unclear whether Schultz was represented by anyone within the office, which typically does not release information about defendants. .
In a statement Friday, Fort Campbell spokesman Lt. Col. Tony Hefler acknowledged Schultz's current assignment to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault Command) and said he would “cooperate with the U.S. Attorney's Office” on the case. We will continue to cooperate with them in the future.” .
Schultz's arrest follows several recent developments regarding military secrets.
An air force member was arrested Saturday and charged with illegally sending classified information about Russia's war in Ukraine to a woman who claimed to be in Ukraine through a foreign dating site.
And on Monday, Jack Teixeira of the Massachusetts Air National Guard pleaded guilty to leaking classified military documents related to the Ukraine war on Discord.
correction (March 8, 2024, 2:23 PM ET): A previous version of this article misstated when the investigation began. The alleged conspiracy began in June 2022, not the investigation.
