NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A U.S. military intelligence analyst is facing a federal, six-count indictment after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said he collected and sent information about fighter jets, missiles and attack helicopters to a Chinese co-conspirator.
The FBI held a press conference alongside U.S. Attorney Henry Leventis in Middle Tennessee on Thursday to discuss the indictment. During it, Leventis said Korbein Schultz was an Army intelligence analyst in the 506th regiment at Fort Campbell.
During the press conference, Leventis said he was responsible for handling confidential information and training others on the storage of that information. He had a Top Secret security clearance, according to a release.
Leventis said he entered "into a multi-year conspiracy" that effectively sold information for cash. It said Schultz was paid on 14 separate occasions for a total of around $42,000, and he started sending information in June 2022. According to a release, a co-conspirator told him to gather information related to weapon systems as well as plans in case Taiwan was attacked.
He sent information about Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, advanced military helicopters, rocket systems, defense missile systems and Chinese military tactics, according to Leventis. Three documents were a manual on a specific helicopter, a manual on a fighter aircraft and a techniques and procedure manual.
The release said he also sent documents about hypersonic equipment, studies on how the U.S. military could develop in the future, summaries of military drills and documents related to the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System.
The indictment said most of the documents Schultz had access to were on a computer that required users to have appropriate credentials. It also said the co-conspirator was a "foreign national purporting to reside in Hong Kong," who purported to "work for a geopolitical consulting firm based overseas."
"He traded our national defense information for cash," Leventis said during the press conference.
The indictment said on Aug. 27, 2022, Schultz told his co-conspirator "that he wished he could be 'Jason Bourne.'" It also said he told the person that he thought about moving to Hong Kong so he could work with the co-conspirator in person.
"On or about August 10, 2023, Korbein Schultz and Conspirator A discussed the recent arrests of two U.S. Navy sailors who were charged with passing sensitive military information to a Chinese intelligence service. Conspirator A advised Korbein Schultz that they must be more careful with security," the indictment said.
He also said Schultz tried to recruit others to gather and send more information. He said Schultz and the co-conspirator used internet-based encryption methods to conceal their communications.
Leventis said he was arrested on Thursday.