A soldier in Texas with a high security clearance has been charged with sharing sensitive information about the military’s main battle tank in exchange for Russian citizenship. Taylor Adam Lee, 22, was arrested on charges of attempting to transmit national defense information to a foreign adversary and trying to export controlled technical data without a license.
“This arrest is a stark reminder of the serious threat our U.S. Army faces,” said Brigadier General Sean F. Stinchon, the commanding general of Army Counterintelligence Command.
Federal prosecutors stated that Lee tried to provide information to someone he believed was a Russian intelligence officer in exchange for Russian citizenship. Lee was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso and held a Top Secret (TS) / Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance, according to the Justice Department.
In June, he allegedly shared information about the M1A2 Abrams tank online and offered assistance to Russia, mentioning that “the USA is not happy with me for trying to expose their weaknesses.” During a July meeting, Lee allegedly handed over an SD card containing documents and information on the Abrams tank and other armored vehicles used by the U.S. military to a person he believed represented the Russian government.
The SD card contained technical data that Lee was not authorized to disclose, as well as other documents marked as Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) with warnings and dissemination controls. Lee also discussed providing specific hardware from the M1A2 Abrams tank to the Russian government and delivered what appeared to be the hardware to a storage unit in El Paso on July 31.
Afterward, he messaged the individual he believed was a Russian government representative, stating: “Mission accomplished.” Lee’s arrest coincided with another incident at Fort Stewart, Georgia, where a soldier shot five other soldiers. All the injured soldiers were treated on-site and then taken to Winn Army Community Hospital.
