Former U.S. Government Contractor Arrested for Allegedly Leaking National Defense Information and Stealing Night Vision Goggles
A former U.S. government contractor was arrested for allegedly leaking classified military information online and stealing night vision goggles from Army Special Operations Command.
James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake, North Carolina, was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday for allegedly leaking national defense information on a social media platform. Authorities allege he posted classified materials related to military operations, which were later reposted by other users. The indictment unsealed Tuesday charges him with unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and theft of government property.
According to the indictment, Ashbacher worked as a contractor at the U.S. Army Special Operations Command facility in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, starting in or about 2021. His role required a Top Secret security clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information access. Investigators allege he photographed and removed unauthorized videos and photographs containing classified military operations without permission.
A search of Ashbacher’s residence revealed additional classified materials, including a write-up containing national defense information and a missing night vision goggle system specific to a military unit within Army Special Operations Command. The FBI Charlotte Field Office, with assistance from the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigative Division, is leading the investigation.
Ashbacher was charged by an indictment unsealed Tuesday and is facing prosecution by Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Logan Liles. The case is being handled in the Eastern District of North Carolina, where all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.