Staff Reports
A man who used to work for the National Security Agency (NSA) was put in jail for almost 22 years for trying to sell secret information, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Jareh Sebastian Dalke, who is 32 years old, was given a sentence of 262 months for attempting to sell classified information. He admitted to six charges of trying to send secret National Defense Information to a foreign agent when he was in court in October 2023. Dalke worked at the NSA from June 6 to July 1, 2022, as an Information Systems Security Designer. During this time, he sent parts of three secret documents to someone he thought was a Russian agent between August and September 2022 using an encrypted email account.
Former NSA worker gets nearly 22 years in prison for selling secrets to undercover FBI agent https://t.co/rCN6kfja78
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 30, 2024
Even though Dalke believed he was selling secrets to Russia, the person he was talking to turned out to be an FBI agent pretending online, as per the DOJ. These secret documents, called Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information, were taken by Dalke during his time at the NSA. In August 2022, he asked for $85,000 for the secret information and said it was important for Russia. He told the FBI agent he was ready to share more information when he got back to Washington, D.C.
Soon after, Dalke arranged to meet at Union Station in downtown Denver to give more classified material to the supposed Russian contact. With help from the FBI, he transferred five files using a laptop, four of which were labeled Top Secret NDI. One of them was a letter in Russian saying he was ready to help more. He was arrested on Sept. 28, 2023, after sending the files.
The Attorney General, Merrick B. Garland, shared, “This sentence proves that those who try to betray our country will be punished for what they have done. I am thankful to the FBI Denver and Washington Field Offices for their outstanding work on this case.” FBI Director Christopher Wray also mentioned that Dalke’s sentence should be a strong warning to anyone trusted with keeping secret national defense information that there are serious consequences for betraying that trust. It is important to protect our country’s secrets and those who try to sell them must face the consequences.
It is truly disheartening to see someone who was in a position of trust at the NSA try to sell classified information to a foreign agent. The sentence for Dalke is fitting considering the seriousness of his actions. It should be a lesson to all government employees that betraying our country’s trust will not be taken lightly. The work of the FBI in capturing him before any real harm was done is commendable and shows the importance of our law enforcement agencies in protecting our nation’s security
