In an indictment unsealed Monday night, the Justice Department accuses a former military official assigned to U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) of stealing national defense secrets from a woman he met on a foreign dating site.
David Franklin Slater retired from the Army as a lieutenant colonel and worked as a military employee at STRATCOM, which oversees U.S. nuclear forces, where he held top secret intelligence and had access to classified briefings about Russia's war against Ukraine. did it. according to Until the indictment. From February to April 2022, he is suspected of disseminating information marked as “confidential” to an individual claiming to be a Ukrainian woman on a foreign dating site. (Related: Jack Teixeira pleads guilty to leaking classified Pentagon documents)
According to a transcript of their conversation included in the indictment, the woman referred to Slater as her “lover's secret informant” and “secret agent.”
According to the Justice Department, she frequently asked him to provide defense information that was “classified, private, and kept in strict confidence.” Said In a press release. Some of that information concerned military targets related to Russia's war in Ukraine and U.S. information about Russia's military capabilities.
“American intelligence says that 100% of Russian troops are already stationed on Ukrainian territory. Do you think this information is reliable?” the co-conspirators wrote in the indictment on March 7, 2022. Asked the first request mentioned.
I followed other people regularly as well.
“By the way, you were the first to tell me that NATO countries are traveling by train, and it was just announced (already in the evening) on our news. Dear Secret Informant! How was the meeting? Was it a success?'' the co-conspirator texted Slater on March 15, 2022.
Another confidential information request was signed in March. “You are my secret agent. With love.”
In both cases, Slater provided the requested confidential information, the indictment alleges.
“Dave, the weapons supply is completely classified, which is great!” the co-conspirator told Mr. Slater on April 12.
Authorities arrested Slater on Saturday, according to a press release accompanying the indictment. The Department of Justice charged Slater with one count of conspiracy to disclose national defense information and two counts of fraudulent disclosure.
He was scheduled to make his first court appearance on Tuesday. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $750,000, according to the Justice Department.
“Let me be clear: modernization remains a priority; #USSTRATCOM The army is ready to fight tonight. ”
-General Anthony Cotton, Commander, U.S. Strategic CommandUSSTRATCOM's 2024 Posture Statement is available here. https://t.co/BYGOBQNovD#Peace is our profession pic.twitter.com/xiGKVGDwaM
— U.S. Strategic Command (@US_STRATCOM) February 29, 2024
Slater retired from the Army in 2020 and had been working at U.S. Air Force STRATCOM at Offutt Air Force Base since August 2021, just months before Slater's contact with the foreign national, the indictment states.
Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen, who heads the Justice Department's national security division, said in a statement that Slater “intentionally transmitted sensitive national defense information to others in blatant disregard of his oath to protect the nation's security and secrecy.” He said it would be done. “The Department of Justice intends to hold accountable those who knowingly and knowingly endangered our country by disclosing classified information.”
All content produced by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent, nonpartisan news distribution service, is available free of charge to legitimate news publishers with large audiences. All republished articles must include our logo, reporter byline, and DCNF affiliation. If you have any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact us at licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
