Military court convicts US sailor of attempted espionage

A military court convicted a Navy sailor based in Japan on Friday of attempted espionage.

Petty Officer Bryce Pedicini, a fire controller, was charged with eight espionage-related counts in February for allegedly providing documents to a foreign government official between November 2022 and May 2023.

After a seven-day trial, he was found guilty of attempted espionage, disobedience of a lawful order and attempted violation of a general lawful order, according to a statement from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).

“This guilty verdict holds Mr. Pedicini accountable for his betrayal of his country and other service members,” said NCIS Director Omar Lopez. in a statement. “America’s adversaries are relentless in their attempts to degrade our military superiority.”

“However, the American public should be confident knowing that NCIS will also not relent in our mission to deter, disrupt and defeat the ongoing threat from foreign intelligence entities. While the overwhelming majority of Navy Department personnel are honorable and faithful public servants, NCIS stands ready to expose those who are not,” Lopez said.

NCIS said its investigation revealed that Pedicini turned over classified and national defense information to a foreign government official beginning in November 2022. The service said Pedicini “had reason to believe that doing so would be harmful to the United States or advantageous to the foreign nation.”

It’s unclear which foreign nation NCIS said it was involved with.

The service said Pedicini, previously assigned to the USS Higgins, operated “under the guise of writing research articles” to deliver information.

NCIS detained him on May 19, 2023. His sentencing by a military judge will be on May 7.

The Hill reached out to the Navy’s Judge Advocate General for comment on Pedicini’s attorney.