Sergeant Korbein Schultz, a US Army intelligence analyst with top-secret security clearance, has pleaded guilty to charges of providing sensitive defense information to China. Schultz was arrested in March at Fort Campbell, a military base on the Kentucky-Tennessee border, and now faces a potential prison sentence of several decades.
According to the Justice Department, Schultz admitted to conspiring to obtain and disclose national defense information, exporting technical data related to defense articles without a license, and accepting bribes. He was paid $42,000 for handing over dozens of classified US military documents to an individual in Hong Kong, whom he believed to be connected to the Chinese government.
The documents Schultz provided included critical information about US weapons systems, military tactics, and strategy. Notably, one document discussed the lessons learned by the US Army from the Ukraine-Russia war, which could be applied in a potential defense of Taiwan. Other documents detailed Chinese military tactics and preparedness, as well as US military exercises and forces stationed in South Korea and the Philippines. Additional materials included sensitive information about the HH-60 helicopter, the F-22A fighter jet, the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, and various missile systems.
Robert Wells, executive assistant director of the FBI’s National Security Branch, stated that governments like China are actively targeting US military personnel and national security information, and that authorities will take every measure to protect this information from hostile foreign governments. Schultz’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 23, 2025.
This arrest is part of a series of espionage cases involving US military personnel, including the recent arrests of two US Navy sailors in California, Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao and Jinchao Wei, for spying for China. Zhao was sentenced to 27 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiring with a foreign intelligence officer and accepting a bribe.
