The Trump administration revealed that a government contractor leaked information about the military operation in Venezuela earlier this month.
‘There could be some others, and we’ll let you know about that. We’re hot on their trail.’
The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that the FBI searched the home of one of its reporters, claiming the raid was part of an investigation into Aurelio Perez-Lugones.
Perez-Lugones is a Maryland resident who was working as a systems engineer and information technology specialist for a government contracting company when federal authorities arrested him. He has maintained Top Secret security clearance since at least 2000, according to a January 9 affidavit.
Federal prosecutors accused Perez-Lugones of printing screenshots of a Top Secret report, as well as writing classified information on a notepad and taking the sheets of paper home. When authorities searched his home last week, they allegedly found multiple documents that were marked as Secret, including a document found in his lunch box.
The criminal complaint claimed the documents were related to “national defense.” However it did not specify any details, such as whether the information pertained to the United States’ recent operation in Venezuela.
FBI Director Kash Patel shared a statement on Wednesday about the recent arrest of the leaker and that individual’s ties to the Washington Post.
Photographer: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
“This morning the @FBI and partners executed a search warrant of an individual at the Washington Post who was found to allegedly be obtaining and reporting classified, sensitive military information from a government contractor — endangering our warfighters and compromising America’s national security,” Patel wrote.
During an interview with Fox News, Attorney General Pam Bondi described the leaker as an IT contractor who had been working with the Department of War and allegedly leaked information related to “a foreign adversary.”
“The great men and women of the FBI executed a search warrant at the direction of Kash Patel and my office on the reporter’s home, seizing the devices that contained classified material regarding our foreign adversaries,” Bondi stated.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
President Donald Trump also addressed news about the alleged leak, describing the suspect as the “leaker on Venezuela.”
“A very bad leaker. So there could be some others, and we’ll let you know about that. We’re hot on their trail,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday, adding that the alleged leaker would “probably be in jail for a long time.”
Trump officials have confirmed that the suspected leaker is in custody.
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News, Donald trump, Trump, Trump administration, Trump admin, Pam bondi, Kash patel, Fbi, Federal bureau of investigation, Venezuela, National defense, Washington post, Aurelio perez-lugones, Leaker, Politics