Ex-NSA man caught

Attempted espionage for Moscow: 21 years in prison

A cyber expert who briefly worked for the US intelligence service NSA has been sentenced to more than 21 years in prison for attempted espionage for Russia, according to the US Department of Justice. The 32-year-old had printed out top-secret documents.

"The sentence shows that those who seek to betray our country will be held accountable for their crimes," said Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday.

Jareh Sebastian Dalke worked for the NSA for less than four weeks before terminating his employment at the end of June 2022, citing family problems. After his employment ended, he offered the printed documents in encrypted online services to a person he believed to be a Russian agent.

In fact, it was an undercover agent of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In October, Dalke pleaded guilty to six charges in a US district court.