A former US diplomatic officer has been arrested and charged with giving top-secret documents to a Chinese agent.<\/p>\n
According to an affidavit, Kevin Mallory, a 60-year-old from Virginia, is said to have travelled to Shanghai in March and April 2017.<\/p>\n
He also failed to declare $16,500 (\u00a313,000) in cash found in two carry-on bags when travelling through Chicago airport, said the Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Under the federal Espionage Act, he could face life in prison.<\/p>\n
The FBI has confirmed he was entrusted with high-level clearance when working for the government.<\/p>\n
His access was rescinded when he ceased to be a state employee in 2012, after which he became a self-employed consultant.<\/p>\n
The Washington Post said that, according to two government officials, Mr Mallory was employed by the CIA, but this information was not given in court.<\/p>\n
During a voluntary interview with FBI agents in May, Mr Mallory said the person he met in Shanghai told him he was working for a Chinese think-tank, the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS).<\/p>\n
The FBI has, since at least 2014, believed that Chinese spies use SASS affiliations to cover-up their identities, according to the US Department of Justice.<\/p>\n
The affidavit also detailed a note Mr Mallory allegedly wrote to the individual, saying “your object is to gain information, and my object is to be paid”.<\/p>\n
Mr Mallory, who speaks Chinese Mandarin, made an initial appearance in court on Thursday, and will return for a preliminary hearing on Friday.<\/p>\n
“These charges should send a message to anyone who would consider violating the public’s trust and compromising our national security by disclosing classified information,” said Dana J Boente, acting assistant attorney general for national security.<\/p>\n
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A former US diplomatic officer has been arrested and charged with giving top-secret documents to a Chinese agent. According to an affidavit, Kevin Mallory, a 60-year-old from Virginia, is said to have travelled to Shanghai in March and April 2017. He also failed to declare $16,500 (\u00a313,000) in cash found in two carry-on bags when […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107],"tags":[8523,8524,8525],"yoast_head":"\n