FBI sting operation nets Jonathan and Diana Toebbe accused of trying to sell US nuclear secrets
US Navy nuclear engineer Jonathan Toebbe, who held a top-secret safety clearance, and his spouse Diana had been arrested Saturday in West Virginia by the FBI and Naval Legal Investigative Service after the couple allegedly offered data in regards to the design of nuclear-powered US warships “to an individual they believed was a consultant of a international energy however was really an undercover FBI agent,” based on a Division of Justice assertion.
The Justice Division stated Toebbe had entry to data on naval nuclear propulsion and delicate army design components together with “working parameters and efficiency traits of the reactors for nuclear powered warships.”
An FBI agent in a prison grievance justifying the arrest alleges Toebbe first despatched a package deal to a international authorities in April 2020 providing to promote the nuclear secrets and techniques, and an undercover FBI agent responded a number of months later through an encrypted electronic mail program and corresponded with him. The agent labored on gaining Toebbe’s belief earlier than he allegedly agreed to promote the knowledge for 1000’s of {dollars} in cryptocurrency, based on the grievance.
Based on the grievance, the FBI “carried out an operation within the Washington, D.C. space that concerned inserting a sign at a location related to (the international authorities) in an tried effort to achieve bona fides with ‘ALICE,'” the identify Toebbe used as an alias when penning emails.
Throughout what Toebbe believed to be a “lifeless drop,” or a hiding spot spies use to secretly cross data, the FBI stated it arrested Jonathan and Diana on Saturday after Jonathan “positioned one more SD card” with categorized data at a pre-arranged location in West Virginia. The couple has been charged with violations of the Atomic Vitality Act, which prohibits anybody with entry to categorized data from sharing that data. The grievance claims the Toebbes tried to “talk, transmit, and disclose the identical to a different particular person with the intent to injure america and to safe a bonus to a international nation.”
It’s unclear whether or not the couple has retained authorized counsel but.
Constructing belief
In a single trust-building transfer in the course of the prolonged correspondence, the FBI organized to ship a sign to Toebbe from a constructing that homes the unnamed nation’s diplomats.
After gaining Toebbe’s belief, the agent tried to persuade Toebbe to satisfy in particular person, however Toebbe was anxious about being caught. The agent advised utilizing a lifeless drop at a location of his selecting. In March 2021, Toebbe allegedly wrote, “I’m involved that utilizing a lifeless drop location your pal prepares makes me very weak. If different events are observing the placement, I can be unable to detect them.”
Toebbe additionally stated he was anxious about receiving money funds, as a result of serial numbers could be traced, and he anxious “monitoring gadgets and different nasty surprises have to be thought of as properly,” based on the FBI’s prison grievance.
In April 2021, Toebbe allegedly wrote, “Is there some bodily sign you can also make that proves your id to me? I may plan to go to Washington D.C. over the Memorial Day weekend. I’d simply be one other vacationer within the crowd. Maybe you possibly can fly a sign flag in your roof? One thing simply observable from the road, however nothing to arouse an adversaries (sic) suspicion?”
The secret agent replied, “We’ll set a sign from our principal constructing observable from the road. It’s going to carry you consolation with sign on show from space inside our property that we management and never a [sic] adversary. For those who agree please acknowledge.”
Toebbe as a substitute allegedly advised utilizing the decentralized cryptocurrency Monero as a result of it “offers each us wonderful deniability.” In an electronic mail cited within the complaisnt, Toebbe allegedly stated he would ship an SD card, containing a number of hundred pages of technical information. As soon as he confirmed receipt of the cryptocurrency, Toebbe allegedly wrote, “I gives you the passphrase.”
Toebbe additionally allegedly instructed the agent he would by no means use “the identical drop location twice. I gives you a brand new Monero deal with every time. The decryption key can be totally different every time. No patterns for third events to look at. The one digital footprints can be Proton to Proton, so there’s much less danger of encrypted site visitors being collected for future evaluation by third events. That half just isn’t good. Maybe as our friendship develops we’ll change addresses periodically?”
In June 2021, Toebbe and his spouse traveled to West Virginia the place the FBI stated Toebbe “positioned an SD card hid inside half a peanut butter sandwich at a pre-arranged ‘lifeless drop’ location.”
After retrieving the SD card, the secret agent despatched Toebbe a $20,000 cryptocurrency fee and Toebbe responded with the outline key for the cardboard, based on the grievance. The FBI stated it “opened the supplied SD card and supplied the contents” to a US Navy subject material skilled, who confirmed it had categorized data.
An ongoing correspondence
The FBI stated Toebbe allegedly carried on the connection with the secret agent, making one other lifeless drop in jap Virginia in August 2021, the place the FBI had him underneath surveillance as he left his home in Annapolis, Maryland, and drove to the lifeless drop.
The grievance stated “the FBI noticed JONATHAN TOEBBE service a lifeless drop in jap Virginia. The FBI noticed JONATHAN TOEBBE place an merchandise within the container and take away a written message positioned within the container by the FBI.”
“The FBI subsequently opened the SD card and supplied the contents to the U.S. Navy subject material skilled. The U.S. Navy subject material skilled decided that a number of paperwork on the SD card contained Restricted Knowledge. Particularly, the U.S. Navy subject material skilled decided that the doc contained schematic designs for the Virginia-class submarine. Virginia-class submarines are nuclear-powered cruise missile fast- assault submarines, which incorporate the most recent in stealth, intelligence gathering, and weapons programs expertise,” the prison grievance alleged.
In one other alternate listed within the grievance, Toebbe defined how he obtained all the categorized data, saying, “I used to be extraordinarily cautious to collect the recordsdata I possess slowly and naturally within the routine of my job, so no one would suspect my plan. We obtained coaching on warning indicators to identify insider threats. We made very positive to not show even a single one. I don’t imagine any of my former colleagues would suspect me, if there’s a future investigation.”
He additionally stated, “I’ve thought of the doable want to depart on brief discover. Ought to that ever turn out to be crucial, I can be ceaselessly grateful to your assist extracting me and my household. I surmise step one can be unannounced journey to a protected third nation with plans to satisfy your colleagues. We have now passports and money put aside for this objective.” He stated he hoped such a transfer would by no means show crucial.
Toebbe stated he hoped to someday to satisfy and have drinks together with his international handler, writing unwittingly to the FBI agent, “Thanks to your partnership as properly my pal. In the future, when it’s protected, maybe two outdated buddies can have an opportunity to stumble into one another at a restaurant, share a bottle of wine and snicker over tales of their shared exploits. A positive thought, however I agree that our mutual want for safety could make that not possible. Whether or not we meet or no[sic], I’ll at all times bear in mind your bravery in serving your nation and your dedication to serving to me.”
