The punishment sought by government prosecutors, a former employee of the National Security Agency, who sold secret material to an undercover FBI agent he thought was a Russian official, was sentenced to nearly 22 years in prison on Monday.
Jareh Sebastian Dalke, 32, was given a 262-month sentence that U.S. District Judge Raymond Moore called “mercy” for what he perceived to be a deliberate move to accept the job at the NSA in order to be able to sell secrets of national security.
Moore stated that he could have given Dalke an even lengthier prison term.
“This was blatant. It was brazen and, in my mind, it was deliberate. It was a betrayal, and it was as close to treasonous as you can get,” Moore stated.
In a bargain with prosecutors, Dalke’s counsel had requested that the Army veteran receive a 14-year prison sentence for espionage, in part because the material he sold in 2022 did not fall into the hands of the enemy and inflict harm.
In addition, Dalke’s assistant federal public defender David Kraut advocated for a reduced sentence, citing Dalke’s traumatic brain injury, four prior suicide attempts, and childhood trauma, which included witnessing domestic abuse and drug misuse.
According to research, certain types of childhood trauma make people more likely to engage in risky behavior in the future, he said.
Later, Dalke revealed to Moore that he had also had PTSD, bipolar disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Dalke expressed his regret and embarrassment over these diagnoses.
He disputed that his decision to agree to sell the secrets was driven by ideology or financial gain. Dalke added that he was drawn to the excitement of what he was doing even though he suspected he was genuinely speaking with law authorities.
Moore expressed skepticism on Dalke’s statements regarding his illnesses, citing the lack of expert testimony or medical records from the defense.
Dalke, who spent roughly a month working at the NSA, reportedly questioned the US government’s role in inflicting harm to the world and told the undercover FBI agent he wanted to “cause change” but that he was also $237,000 in debt.
Additionally, he allegedly stated that his ancestry “ties back to your country” was the reason he chose to collaborate with Russia.
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According to the plea agreement, Dalke was initially paid $16,499 in bitcoin for portions of some documents that he gave the agent to demonstrate what he had. He then offered to sell the other material he had for $85,000. According to the prosecution, he would have made roughly $85,000 a year at the NSA.
On September 28, 2022, the agent gave him instructions to go to the downtown train station in Denver and deliver the documents within a four-hour window using a secure digital link.
According to the plea agreement, Dalke arrived with his laptop and used the connection to send a thank-you note that was written in Russian and ended with the words “looking forward to our friendship and shared benefit.” Agents from the FBI apprehended him shortly after he transferred all the files using his laptop.
Dalke’s accusation states that among the data he attempted to provide to Russia was an evaluation of the military offensive potential of a third, unidentified nation. Sensitive U.S. defense capabilities are also described, some of which are related to that same foreign nation.
Following the hearing, FBI Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek spoke to the media outside of court. He said that while he was unable to reveal the contents of the documents, Dalke was aware of the risk they posed.
U.S. Attorney for Colorado Cole Finegan joined Michalek in saying, “He knew that the disclosure of those documents was expected to cause exceptionally grave danger to the national security of the United States.”
