Sky News: A U.S. Navy officer has been arrested amid allegations that he passed on state secrets, possibly to China and Taiwan.
The officer, said to be Lieutenant Commander Edward Lin, was being held at a US military prison in Virginia under charges of espionage, the White House said on Monday.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest declined to comment on the “substance of the allegations” and referred reporters’ questions to the Department of the Navy.
A US official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the suspect had been held in pre-trial confinement for approximately eight months, and the investigation was ongoing.
Lin, who was born in Taiwan and later became a US citizen, was working at the Navy’s Patrol and Reconnaissance Group HQ, which oversees intelligence collection, according to a redacted Navy charge sheet.
It is alleged that he communicated secret information “with intent or reason to believe it would be used to the advantage of a foreign nation”.
He is accused of both espionage and attempted espionage.
Lin’s identity was first revealed by USNI News, which said he spoke fluent Mandarin and managed the collection of electronic signals from the EP3-E Aries II signals intelligence aircraft.
His name was redacted on the charge sheet and the Navy has not confirmed his identity.
The document does not identify what country or countries were involved, but the official told Reuters both China and Taiwan were possible.
Lin has also been accused of engaging in prostitution and adultery.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Lu Kang, said he was not aware of the details of the case and Taiwan’s Defence Ministry told Reuters it had no information on the case.
