News Opinons Politics

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.”


Alex Murdaugh’s lawyer vows to dismantle infamous kennel video as defense weighs another turn on the stand
Smiling suspect stands out as authorities release mugshots of 5 accused in alleged White House UFC attack plot
How alleged White House UFC attack plotters organized across four states
Watch: Japanese Fans Accidentally Shame Certain Cultures Ruining Our Public Spaces, Go Viral for Unheard-of Behavior at Dallas Stadium
Subcontractors say they’re owed millions, face financial ruin, after helping build Obama Presidential Center
JD Vance Calls Infamous Campaign Comment ‘One of the Dumbest Things I Ever Said’ in New Book
Rhode Island judge faces misconduct complaint over attacks on DOJ lawyers
Republicans question Trump’s ‘privately funded’ ballroom after report points to taxpayer burden
WATCH: Unearthed video shows leftist Senate hopeful celebrating anti-fossil fuel group’s arrival in Texas
Delaware hospital shooting suspect identified, faces multiple charges including first-degree murder
Sick: PBS Bigwig Appears to Keep Job After Publicly Wishing Stroke on Trump in Deranged Birthday Message
Leftist Professor Goes Viral by Admitting the Hard Truth – Trump Has Destroyed Their Dreams and the Democratic Party Too
Judge reveals Luigi Mangione will pursue psychiatric defense in UnitedHealthcare CEO assassination case
12 Key Points on Iran Peace Deal Revealed, as Trump Says He’ll Likely Read It to Media So They Get It Right
Pentagon Sends Coast Guard to Rescue 2 Survivors After Latest Deadly Strike on Narco-Terrorists in Pacific

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.

See also  Trump arrives for UFC fight

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.”


Alex Murdaugh’s lawyer vows to dismantle infamous kennel video as defense weighs another turn on the stand
Smiling suspect stands out as authorities release mugshots of 5 accused in alleged White House UFC attack plot
How alleged White House UFC attack plotters organized across four states
Watch: Japanese Fans Accidentally Shame Certain Cultures Ruining Our Public Spaces, Go Viral for Unheard-of Behavior at Dallas Stadium
Subcontractors say they’re owed millions, face financial ruin, after helping build Obama Presidential Center
JD Vance Calls Infamous Campaign Comment ‘One of the Dumbest Things I Ever Said’ in New Book
Rhode Island judge faces misconduct complaint over attacks on DOJ lawyers
Republicans question Trump’s ‘privately funded’ ballroom after report points to taxpayer burden
WATCH: Unearthed video shows leftist Senate hopeful celebrating anti-fossil fuel group’s arrival in Texas
Delaware hospital shooting suspect identified, faces multiple charges including first-degree murder
Sick: PBS Bigwig Appears to Keep Job After Publicly Wishing Stroke on Trump in Deranged Birthday Message
Leftist Professor Goes Viral by Admitting the Hard Truth – Trump Has Destroyed Their Dreams and the Democratic Party Too
Judge reveals Luigi Mangione will pursue psychiatric defense in UnitedHealthcare CEO assassination case
12 Key Points on Iran Peace Deal Revealed, as Trump Says He’ll Likely Read It to Media So They Get It Right
Pentagon Sends Coast Guard to Rescue 2 Survivors After Latest Deadly Strike on Narco-Terrorists in Pacific
See also  UFC Freedom 250 White House event: Photos

Frese’s is one of six criminal cases the Justice Department has filed related to unauthorized disclosures in the last two years, the agency said.

Story cited here.

Share this article:
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter