- Rahman photographed and transmitted secret documents.
- FBI official says convict betrayed his oath as govt employee.
- “He will pay the price for putting US national security at risk.”
WASHINGTON: Former CIA analyst Asif William Rahman has been sentenced to 37 months in prison for unlawfully retaining and transmitting Top Secret National Defence Information to people who were not entitled to receive it, information which was publicly posted on social media platforms in October 2024.
According to court documents, Rahman, 34, of Vienna, Virginia, was an employee of the CIA since 2016 and had a Top Secret security clearance with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) until his employment was terminated after his arrest.
Some media reports have claimed that Rahman was born in California, and grew up in Ohio. He allegedly leaked secret information about Israeli plans to attack Iran after Tehran had launched a missile attack on Israel on October 1.
“For months, this defendant betrayed the American people and the oaths he took upon entering his office by leaking some of our Nation’s most closely held secrets,” said John Eisenberg, Assistant Attorney General for National Security.
“As this case demonstrates, the Department of Justice will continue to protect our nation by vigorously investigating and prosecuting leakers who compromise our nation’s security”, remarked John Eisenberg.
“[Asif] Rahman violated his position of trust by illegally accessing, removing, and transmitting Top Secret documents vital to the national security of the United States and its allies,” said Erik S Siebert, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
“The urgency with which Rahman was identified, arrested, charged, and prosecuted is a testament to the commitment and professionalism of the investigators and prosecutors who brought him to justice. This case should serve as a stern warning to those who choose to place their own goals over their allegiance to our nation”, maintained Siebert.
“By stealing and divulging classified information and then attempting to conceal his crimes, Rahman not only violated the law; he also betrayed his oath as a government employee and his responsibility to the American people,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division.
“Now he will pay the price for putting American lives and US national security at risk. Let this be a warning to all clearance holders: The FBI will exhaust all avenues to find and bring to justice anyone — no matter who they are — who endangers our nation by disclosing sensitive information without authorization,” remarked Rozhavsky.
According to the Department of Justice (DoJ): “On October 17, 2024, Rahman accessed and printed two Top Secret documents containing National Defence Information regarding a US foreign ally and its planned actions against a foreign adversary. Rahman removed the documents, photographed them, and transmitted them to individuals he knew were not entitled to receive them”.
However, those who received the documents were not named.
By October 18, 2024, the documents appeared publicly on social media platforms, complete with the classification markings. The DoJ says that after October 17, 2024, Rahman engaged in a deletion campaign of work products on his Top Secret workstation.
In 2024, continuing through November, Rahman repeatedly accessed and printed classified National Defence Information, including documents classified up to the Top Secret and further compartmented levels, that he learned in the course of his employment and transmitted to multiple individuals he knew were not entitled to receive it.
Rahman was indicted by a grand jury on November 7, 2024. Earlier, he was arrested in Cambodia where he worked at the US Embassy in Phnom Penh On January 17, 2025, Rahman pleaded guilty to two counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information related to the national defence.
He has remained in custody since his arrest.
Rahman’s sentencing coincides with the Iranian intelligence minister’s claim that his country has a treasure trove of secret information related to Israeli nuclear facilities and its relationship with the West. Esmail Khatib has vowed to make them public soon.
