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The FBI executed a search warrant on the house of a Washington Put up reporter this week as a part of an investigation right into a federal worker who’s suspected of mishandling categorized data, Lawyer Normal Pam Bondi stated.
In an announcement, Bondi stated the warrant was executed on the request of the Pentagon.
“The leaker is at present behind bars,” she stated. “I’m proud to work alongside Secretary Hegseth on this effort. The Trump Administration won’t tolerate unlawful leaks of categorized data that, when reported, pose a grave threat to our Nation’s nationwide safety and the courageous women and men who’re serving our nation.”
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed on social media that legislation enforcement executed the search warrant Wednesday and alleged the journalist had obtained “categorized, delicate navy data from a authorities contractor — endangering our warfighters and compromising America’s nationwide safety. The alleged leaker was arrested this week and is in custody. As that is an ongoing investigation, we may have no additional remark.”
The choice to execute a search warrant on the house of a journalist is very uncommon, and will escalate the already tense relationship between the media and the Trump administration.
It was unclear why the Justice Division felt the necessity to search the house of a reporter although the goal of the investigation has already been charged and detained.
The FBI carried out the search on the Alexandria, Virginia, house of reporter Hannah Natanson, who writes in regards to the federal workforce for the newspaper, in response to the Washington Put up.
Natanson didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
In keeping with The Washington Put up, the warrant reveals the investigation is focusing on Aurelio Perez-Lugones, a system administrator in Maryland who holds a high secret safety clearance.
Perez-Lugones, a authorities contractor in Annapolis, Maryland, and former member of the U.S. Navy, was already charged on Jan. 8 in a prison grievance with violating the Espionage Act for unlawfully retaining nationwide protection data.
Perez-Lugones, who holds a high secret safety clearance, is accused of accessing a categorized report associated to an unnamed international nation, taking a display screen shot and printing it.
He additionally allegedly accessed one other report associated to a authorities operational exercise and took notes on a yellow notepad.
Throughout a search of his Laurel, Maryland, house and automotive that very same day, the FBI discovered a doc marked as “secret” in his lunchbox, the prison grievance says. Extra paperwork marked as “secret” had been additionally found in his basement, the grievance stated.
A listening to in Perez-Lugones’ case has been scheduled for Thursday in Baltimore.
A spokesperson for the Put up stated that the paper is reviewing and monitoring the state of affairs.
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