Virginia Man Arrested for Hoarding 1,000+ Classified Documents in Basement
A Virginia resident has been arrested after investigators say they found more than 1,000 pages of classified national defense material stored in a home basement, some kept in trash bags and other insecure places. Authorities say the discovery followed a court-authorized search and a probe into alleged unauthorized removal and retention of sensitive documents. The case raises fresh concerns about how trusted personnel handle the nation’s most secret information.
Ashley Tellis, 64, who lives in Vienna, Virginia, was taken into custody on Oct. 11 and has appeared in the Eastern District of Virginia for a detention hearing. Federal filings allege the defendant unlawfully kept classified national defense information at his residence. The arrest was announced by the Department of Justice and carried out after investigative work by federal partners.
Court records state Tellis held a Top Secret security clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information access and has been employed by the U.S. Department of State since 2001. He also reportedly performed contract work for the Department of Defense’s Office of Net Assessment and served as a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Those roles gave him access to highly sensitive systems and facilities.
“Safeguarding our country’s national defense information is a top priority,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Sue J. Bai of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “For those entrusted with our country’s most sensitive information, protecting it is a privilege and solemn responsibility. With the hard work and dedication of our prosecutors and agents, we will hold this defendant accountable for breaching that trust and exploiting his security clearance to unlawfully retain classified information detailing our military capabilities.”
Prosecutors allege Tellis accessed classified records multiple times from secure spaces, including a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility at the Department of Defense and a protected computer system at the State Department. Investigators say those actions involved removing materials from controlled environments without authorization. Those alleged steps are central to the government’s case.
“The FBI arrested Ashley Tellis, a senior advisor at the Department of State and a contractor within the Department of Defense, for allegedly removing over a thousand pages of classified national defense information from government facilities and storing them in his home,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. “This arrest should serve as a stark warning to anyone thinking about undermining national security. The FBI and our partners will do everything within our power to find you and hold you accountable.”
During the search of Tellis’s home, agents reportedly recovered more than 1,000 pages bearing classification markings such as SECRET and TOP SECRET. Documents were found in locked filing cabinets, in a basement home office, and in trash bags in a basement utility area, according to authorities. The mix of storage methods drew immediate concern from investigators about the potential exposure of critical defense information.
Prosecutors also describe deliberate efforts to obscure the provenance of some files, alleging that Tellis altered a classified file name, printed parts under the new title, and then deleted the renamed electronic file. In a separate incident he is said to have put classified material into a notepad and hidden it inside a personal briefcase before leaving a secure facility. Those behaviors, if proven, show an intent to hide and transport sensitive material outside authorized channels.
“We are fully focused on protecting the American people from all threats, foreign and domestic. The charges as alleged in this case represent a grave risk to the safety and security of our citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Halligan for the Eastern District of Virginia. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served.”
The investigation is being led by the FBI Washington Field Office with help from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service. Officials emphasized rapid coordination across agencies to secure material and prevent potential compromise. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Schlessinger and Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook are handling prosecution in the Eastern District of Virginia.
“U.S. government security clearance holders are entrusted to keep our nation’s most sensitive secrets safe,” said Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the FBI Washington Field Office. “By allegedly removing classified documents from government facilities and storing them in his basement, Mr. Tellis betrayed that trust. The FBI and our federal partners acted quickly to execute a court-authorized search warrant and arrest Tellis to protect our national security and prevent highly classified defense information from falling into the wrong hands.”
Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.
