A former CIA analyst pleaded guilty today to retaining and transmitting top secret national defense information to people who had no right to receive it, information that was publicly posted on a media platform social services in October 2024.
According to court documents, Asif William Rahman, 34, of Vienna, was a CIA employee since 2016 and had a Top-Secret security clearance with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI).
“Mr. Rahman betrayed the trust of the American people by illegally sharing classified national defense information that he was sworn to protect,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Department of Defense’s National Security Division. Justice. “Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that the Justice Department will make every effort to quickly track down and aggressively prosecute those who harm the United States by illegally disclosing our national security secrets.”
“Asif Rahman pleads guilty in federal court three months to the day to disclosing top secret U.S. documents in violation of his oath, responsibility and the law,” said U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia. “This district, in partnership with federal law enforcement and the intelligence community, demonstrated dedication, skill and speed to quickly bring him to justice.” Mr. Rahman’s actions have put lives at risk, undermined U.S. foreign relations, and compromised our ability to collect vital intelligence in the future. »
“With today’s plea, Asif Rahman recognizes that he betrayed his country’s trust by sharing classified information despite the risk to the United States and our allies,” said Deputy Director Robert Wells of the national security branch of the FBI. “Government employees who have security clearances and access to our nation’s classified information must promise to protect it. Rahman openly violated this commitment and took several steps to conceal his actions. The FBI will use all of its resources to investigate and hold accountable those who illegally transmit classified information and endanger our nation’s national security interests.
“Today’s plea demonstrates the FBI’s determination to deploy the tools and authorities necessary to identify, locate and bring to justice a government clearance holder who violated his oath to support and defend the U.S. Constitution,” said David Sundberg, deputy director of the FBI. Washington Field Office. “This is a good reminder to all clearance holders that the FBI and our intelligence community partners will spare no resources to seek out and immediately hold accountable those who violate the law and disclose classified information without authorization, wherever they are in the world. »
According to court documents, on October 17, 2024, Rahman accessed and printed two top secret documents containing national defense information regarding a foreign ally of the United States and its planned actions against a foreign adversary. Rahman removed the documents, photographed them, and passed them on to people he knew did not have the right to receive them. On October 18, 2024, the documents appeared publicly on several social media platforms, along with the classification marks.
After October 17, 2024, Rahman deleted and edited journal entries and written products on his personal electronic devices to conceal his personal views on U.S. politics and authored entries to construct a false narrative regarding his activity. Rahman also destroyed several electronic devices, including a personal mobile device and an Internet router that he used to transmit classified information and photographs of classified documents, and threw the destroyed devices into public trash in an attempt to thwart further attacks. possible investigations into him and his illegal conduct. .
Beginning in spring 2024 and continuing through November 2024, Rahman repeatedly accessed and printed classified National Defense information, including documents classified up to the Top Secret level, to take to his residence. There, Rahman reproduced the documents and, in doing so, altered them in an attempt to conceal their source and his activity. Rahman then communicated top secret information he had learned during his employment to several people who he knew had no right to receive it.
Rahman was indicted by a grand jury on November 7, 2024, and arrested by the FBI as he arrived for work on November 12, 2024. He has remained in custody since his arrest.
Rahman pleaded guilty to two counts of willful withholding and transmission of classified information related to national defense. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 15, 2025. He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for both counts in the plea agreement. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office is investigating the matter.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy A. Edwards Jr. for the Eastern District of Virginia and Prosecutor Brett Reynolds of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.
