U.S. serviceman detained for Abrams tank information leak to Russia

The U.S. Department of Justice reported that 22-year-old Taylor Adam Lee has been charged with attempting to transmit national defense information to a foreign adversary and attempting to export controlled technical data without a license.

According to court documents, the defendant has access to “top secret” information and sensitive information with restricted distribution.

Since around May 2025, Lee had allegedly tried to verify his U.S. Army credentials and send defense information to the Russian Ministry of Defense. In June 2025, he reportedly transmitted export-controlled technical data about the M1A2 Abrams tank online.

In July, during an in-person meeting with someone he believed to be a representative of the Russian government, Lee allegedly handed over an SD card. It contained documents and information about the M1A2 Abrams, another armored combat vehicle used by the U.S. military, and combat operations.

Lee also discussed acquiring and transferring specific equipment from inside the M1A2 Abrams tank to the Russian government. On July 31, 2025, he allegedly delivered what is believed to be this equipment to a storage facility in El Paso. He then sent a message to the person he thought was a Russian government representative, saying: "Mission accomplished."

Lee was arrested on Wednesday morning and appeared before a federal court for the first time the same day.

• At the end of May, an employee of the Pentagon's Intelligence Agency was detained in the United States on suspicion of attempting to pass secret information to a foreign country due to his disagreement with the values of Donald Trump's administration.