A former CIA officer was arrested Monday night for illegally keeping classified information, including the names and phone numbers of assets and covert CIA employees and the locations of covert facilities.
Jerry Chun Shing Lee, also known as Zhen Cheng Li, 53, was arrested after arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
His arrest stems from two court-authorized searches FBI agents conducted in August 2012 of hotel rooms he and his family were staying in during a trip from Hong Kong to northern Virginia, according to an affidavit filed in federal court.
Agents conducted one search of a hotel room in Honolulu on Aug. 13, 2012, where Lee and his family were staying for several days during a layover.
The second search, of a hotel room in Fairfax, Va., occurred Aug. 15, 2012.
During the two searches of Lee’s rooms and luggage, agents found classified information in two small books stored in his luggage. The books were described as a datebook and an address book, and each included handwritten notes.
In the datebook, FBI agents found information related to operational notes from asset meetings, operational meeting locations, operational phone numbers, the true names of assets, and covert facilities.
In the address book, agents found the true names and phone numbers of assets and covert CIA employees, and the addresses of CIA facilities.
The CIA determined Lee’s books contained classified information, including Secret information and at least one instance of Top Secret information, “the disclosure of which could cause exceptionally grave damage to the National Security” of the U.S., the affidavit states.
The information found in the books matches information contained in classified cables Lee wrote while he worked at the CIA, according to the affidavit.
The FBI interviewed Lee five different times in May and June 2013, but he never mentioned having the books.
Lee appeared in federal court on Tuesday and faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted.
The 53-year-old is a naturalized citizen who currently lives in Hong Kong. Lee started working for the CIA in 1994 and had a Top Secret clearance, which was terminated when he left the federal government in 2007.
Lee joined the CIA after serving in the U.S. Army from 1982 to 1986 and graduating from Hawaii Pacific University in 1992, according to court documents.
