(PatriotPostNews.com) – A Navy sailor has been charged by the United States for allegedly giving a foreign government classified documents.
Bryce Pedicini is based in Japan. He is accused of providing materials to an employee with an unspecified foreign government, an act he is said to have committed a minimum of seven times between November 2022 and May 2023.
The chief petty officer fire controlman had been working on the USS Higgins, an Arleigh Burke-class ship and guided missile destroyer, according to a spokesperson from the United States Naval Surface Force, Commander Arlo Abrahamson.
Pedicini is currently under investigation for giving several classified documents—related to national defense—to an unnamed member of the foreign government. Although more specific details about what information the compromised materials contained are unclear, other allegations against Pedicini include him sneaking photos to another foreign official.
The images were of a computer that was designated to store classified information. This incident occurred in May 2023, when Pedicini was serving in Yokosuka, Japan.
A charge sheet viewed by NBC News details that the sailor had “lawful access” to certain American national defense information that, if turned into enemy hands, could result in “injury” to the United States and benefit “a foreign nation.”
Pedicini is also accused of not properly reporting “a foreign contact” and having his personal electronic device on him while in a “secure room.” The sailor, who has been in the Navy since 2009 and earned several awards for his service, was officially charged in May 2023.
He is currently being held in confinement prior to his trial and is scheduled to appear for a court martial in the coming days. News of his charges comes after Wenheng Zhao, another petty officer, pleaded guilty in October 2023 to exchanging sensitive military information with a Chinese officer for thousands of dollars. He was sentenced to more than two years in prison.
Copyright 2024, PatriotPostNews.com
