A former U.S. Consulate guard has pleaded guilty to attempting to sell classified information to China, compromising national security and putting the country at risk for personal gain.
Bryan Underwood, a 32-year-old former resident of Indiana, pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to one count of attempting to communicate national defense information to a foreign government with intent or reason to believe that the documents, photographs or information in question were to be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of a foreign nation.
The guilty plea was announced by Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Eric J. Boswell, Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security.
Underwood was first charged in an indictment on Aug. 31, 2011, with two counts of making false statements and was arrested on Sept. 1, 2011. On Sept. 21, 2011, he failed to appear at a scheduled status hearing in federal court in the District of Columbia. The FBI later located Underwood in a hotel in Los Angeles and arrested him there on Sept. 24, 2011. On Sept. 28, 2011, Underwood was charged in a superseding indictment with one count of attempting to communicate national defense information to a foreign government, two counts of making false statements and one count of failing to appear in court pursuant to his conditions of release.
“Bryan Underwood was charged with protecting a new U.S. Consulate compound against foreign espionage, but facing financial hardship, he attempted to betray his country for personal gain,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco. “This prosecution demonstrates that we remain vigilant in protecting America’s secrets and in bringing to justice those who attempt to compromise them.”
Underwood received briefings on how to handle classified information and was tasked with preventing foreign governments from improperly obtaining sensitive or classified information from the U.S. Consulate. Instead, he attempted to sell classified photographs, information, and access related to the U.S. Consulate to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) for personal financial gain.
Underwood faces a maximum potential sentence of life in prison. Sentencing for Underwood has been scheduled for Nov. 19, 2012. The lengthy prison sentence facing Underwood should serve as a warning to those who would compromise national security for personal gain, said U.S. Attorney Machen.
The FBI and U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service worked together to detect and prevent Underwood’s attempted betrayal. “The close working relationship between the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office resulted in the capture and conviction of Bryan Underwood before he could harm the security of our country,” said Assistant Secretary of State Boswell.
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