Former DIA IT specialist pleads guilty to attempted leak of top-secret files

August 29, 2026 at 02:40 AM1 min

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Nathan Vilas Laatsch, a former Defense Intelligence Agency IT specialist, pleaded guilty to attempting to pass classified information to foreign spies. He was arrested in May 2025 after an FBI sting operation caught him transmitting intelligence in an Arlington, Virginia park. His plea agreement recommends a sentence of 11 to 18 years.

Key Facts

Nathan Vilas Laatsch, 29, had top-secret clearance and worked in the DIA's Insider Threat Division.
In March 2025, Laatsch offered to transmit classified information to a 'friendly foreign government.'
The FBI recovered a thumb drive containing nine documents, eight of which were classified as top-secret.
Laatsch was arrested on May 29, 2025, during a second attempted intelligence drop in an Arlington, Virginia park.
His plea agreement recommends a sentence between 11 and 18 years.

The FBI Sting Operation

The FBI initiated an undercover operation after Laatsch offered to transmit classified information to a 'friendly foreign government' in March 2025. Undercover agents posed as representatives of that foreign government. Laatsch accessed classified information, transcribed it onto physical notepads, and concealed the notes in his socks and lunchbox. He then transferred the information to a thumb drive and attempted to dead-drop it in an Arlington, Virginia park. The FBI recovered the drive, which contained nine documents, eight of which were classified as top-secret.

Arrest and Plea Agreement

Laatsch was arrested on May 29, 2025, during a second attempted intelligence drop after electronically transferring files from a picnic table. The transmitted files included sensitive intelligence collection methods and analysis of foreign military exercises. Laatsch also expressed a desire for foreign citizenship. His plea agreement recommends a sentence between 11 and 18 years.