Intelligence Employee Leaked Top Secret Information to Reporter With Whom He Was Romantically Involved, Feds Say

An employee for the Defense Intelligence Agency was arrested Wednesday on accusations that he disclosed classified information to two journalists, one of whom he had a romantic relationship with, the Justice Department said.

Henry Kyle Frese, 30, of Alexandria, was charged with two counts of willful transmission of national defense information, each carrying a maximum of 10 years imprisonment.

Federal prosecutors say Frese, whose government security clearance allowed him access to top secret and sensitive information, accessed multiple classified intelligence reports and leaked information about a foreign country’s weapons systems to a journalist. Authorities say some of the reports Frese accessed were unrelated to his job duties.

“Frese was caught red-handed disclosing sensitive national security information for personal gain,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers said in a statement. “Frese betrayed the trust placed in him by the American people – a betrayal that risked harming the national security of this country.”

Trump’s DC beautification push wins rare Dem praise as president snaps landmarks back to life

White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting sharpens focus on Trump’s ballroom construction proposal

Navy Sends Robots to Take Out Iranian Mines in Strait of Hormuz: Several Successful Detonations Already Reported

WHCD Shooter Was California Teacher Once Praised as ‘Teacher of the Month’

House lawmakers to watch as GOP leadership tries to pass FISA extension

Becerra gains momentum in California governor’s race after Swalwell shake-up

California DOGE leader slams Newsom, Bonta over state’s massive fraud issues: “Every day is opposite day”

Mississippi middle schoolers stop runaway bus after driver loses consciousness from asthma attack

Correspondents’ dinner chaos hits high-profile guests already marked by political violence

Who is Cole Allen? California man named as suspect in White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting

Breaking: WH Correspondents’ Dinner Shooter Identified, Appears to Be Kamala Harris Donor on Public Listing

Trump strikes defiant tone after another shooting: ‘I can’t be concerned’

WH Correspondents’ Dinner Cancelled After Shooting Despite Trump Wanting the Show to Go on

Secret Service in line of fire at WHCA shooting still unpaid due to Dem-led shutdown

Man charged security checkpoint and shot Secret Service agent at White House correspondents’ dinner: Trump

The unauthorized disclosures to the two reporters happened in 2018 and 2019. Prior to that, from August 2017 to August 2018, Frese and one of the reporters lived together and appeared to have been involved in a romantic relationship, authorities say. They did not name the two journalists involved and did not say what their media affiliations were.

In April 2018, after Frese accessed one of the intelligence reports, the journalist asked if he’d be willing to speak with another reporter, prosecutors say. Frese then said he was “down” to help the second journalist — a colleague at an affiliated but different news outlet, authorities say.

The journalist whom authorities believe had a relationship with Frese published six articles related to information that Frese leaked, authorities say.

Federal authorities said Frese was “captured” last month on court-authorized surveillance of his cell phone orally transmitting classified national defense information to the second journalist

“Henry Kyle Frese was entrusted with top secret information related to the national defense of our country,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney in Alexandria, Va. “Frese allegedly violated that trust, the oath he swore to uphold, and is charged with engaging in dastardly and felonious conduct at the expense of our country. This indictment should serve as a clear reminder to all of those similarly entrusted with National Defense Information that unilaterally disclosing such information for personal gain, or that of others, is not selfless or heroic, it is criminal.”