A previous member of the United States Army, who holds the rank of sergeant, is confronting serious criminal accusations. The Department of Justice has revealed that this individual made an endeavor to transmit classified national defense data to China by means of electronic mail.

Joseph Daniel Schmidt, a resident of Washington state who is 29 years old, was taken into custody on Friday. He faces charges related to the retention and attempted delivery of national defense information. It is alleged that after leaving the military, Schmidt made efforts to provide defense information to China. From 2015 to 2020, Schmidt served as an active-duty soldier and was assigned to the 109th Military Intelligence Battalion, granting him access to classified information of both secret and top-secret nature.

Upon his departure from the military, Schmidt is accused by prosecutors of contacting the Chinese Consulate in Turkey and subsequently inquiring with the Chinese security services through email. In his communication, he supposedly expressed his willingness to share sensitive information concerning the defense of the United States. Following his departure from the military in 2020, Schmidt traveled to Hong Kong, where he purportedly retained a device capable of accessing U.S. military networks. It is alleged that he then offered this device to the Chinese authorities.

Schmidt was taken into custody on Friday while trying to board a flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco. A panel of jurors issued the indictment on Thursday.

“Members of our military take a sworn oath to defend our country and the Constitution. In that context the alleged actions of this former military member are shocking – not only attempting to provide national defense information, but also information that would assist a foreign adversary to gain access to Department of Defense secure computer networks,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman for the Western District of Washington. “I commend the FBI for their diligent work to end his alleged efforts to betray our country.”

If Schmidt is proven to be culpable, he could potentially be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years in prison for every charge, in addition to a fine of $250,000. The U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command is collaborating with the FBI in their efforts to examine this matter.

In April, an Air National Guardsman from Massachusetts named Jack Teixeira was apprehended on charges of purportedly disclosing classified American intelligence files on the internet. He is confronting six charges of knowingly holding and transmitting national defense information.

The allegations against Schmidt differ from the accusations brought against former President Donald Trump in relation to his alleged mishandling of classified information. Trump is currently facing 31 charges of intentionally keeping classified documents, among other offenses.