An Air Force veteran disclosed classified national defense information about aircraft and weapons to unauthorized individuals, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said Thursday. announcement.
Paul Freeman, 68, of Niceville, Florida, was indicted by a federal grand jury and the charges were unsealed after he appeared before a court in Pensacola on Thursday.
The DOJ accused Freeman of transmitting classified information about Air Force assets between November 2020 and March 2021.
Freeman faces up to 10 years in prison for each of the nine counts on which he was indicted.
The Hill has reached out to the Pentagon for more information on the case.
Although Freeman’s alleged behavior occurred a few years ago, the US has attempted to crack down on confidential leaks.
Former President Trump faces federal charges for refusing to turn over classified documents when he left office, and the DOJ investigated President Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence over their handling of classified documents, but ultimately did not filed charges.
Last year, the US arrested Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira, a former airman from Massachusetts who pleaded guilty during the spring and also appeared in military justice proceedings in May.
Teixeira, an information technology specialist with the 102nd Intelligence Wing at Otis Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts, was accused of leaking highly classified documents about Russia’s war in Ukraine and other sensitive secrets about U.S. allies.
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