A former CIA software engineer was convicted today of federal charges accusing him of causing the biggest theft of classified information in CIA history.
In this courtroom sketch, Joshua Schulte, center, is seated at the defense table flanked by his attorneys during jury deliberations, Wednesday March 4, 2020, in New York. | Elizabeth Williams/AP PhotoNEW YORK — A former CIA software engineer was convicted on Wednesday of federal charges accusing him of causing the biggest theft of classified information in CIA history.
Prosecutors alleged the 33-year-old Schulte was motivated to orchestrate the leak because he believed the CIA had disrespected him by ignoring his complaints about the work environment. So he tried “to burn to the ground” the very work he had helped the agency to create, they said. In his closing, Schulte claimed he was singled out even though “hundreds of people had access to . … Hundreds of people could have stolen it.”U.S. Attorney David Denton countered that there was plenty of proof that Schulte pilfered a sensitive backup computer file.
The prosecutor also encouraged jurors to consider evidence of an attempted coverup, including a list of chores Schulte drew that had an entry reading, “Delete suspicious emails.”Once the jury got the case, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman complimented Schulte on his closing argument.
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