Husband And Wife In Annapolis Espionage Case Plead Guilty: Federal Prosecutors

ANNAPOLIS, MD — An Annapolis husband and wife accused of espionage-related crimes have pleaded guilty last week in separate court proceedings, federal prosecutors said.

Jonathan Toebbe, 43, pleaded guilty Feb. 14 to one count of conspiracy to communicate restricted data, the Associated Press reported. On Feb. 18, his wife, Diana Toebbe, 46, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to communicate restricted data related to the design of nuclear-powered warships.

Diana Toebbe was arrested on Oct. 9, 2021, for joining a conspiracy with her husband to sell government data to a foreign country. In a news release, federal prosecutors said Diana Toebbe served as a lookout while her husband left information at three “dead-drops.”

Jonathan Toebbe's plea deal calls for between 12 and 17 years in federal prison, the AP wrote. Toebbe, a nuclear engineer for the Department of the Navy who had a top-secret security clearance, also agreed to help find all the classified information and the cryptocurrency payments that he received.

The investigation first made headlines in October when officials accused the couple of conspiring to sell government secrets. Prosecutors said the suspects thought they were working with a foreign government, but they were really coordinating with an undercover FBI agent trying to catch them.

The suspects then agreed to sell three files on nuclear-powered warships to the undercover agent in exchange for $100,000 in cryptocurrency, the government said. Authorities said they eventually caught the suspects hiding several encrypted SD cards in West Virginia and Virginia, using decoy containers such as a peanut butter sandwich and a chewing gum package.

The FBI and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service arrested the couple on Oct. 9, 2021, in Jefferson County, West Virginia. The U.S. Department of Justice said Diana Toebbe was a lookout during the drop-offs her husband made.

She asked the court to be able to stay at home with the couple's two children until the trial. Washington Post journalist Devlin Barrett said a judge rejected that request on Oct. 21, 2021, calling Diana Toebbe a flight risk.

Diana Toebbe pleaded guilty to conspiracy to communicate restricted data, which carries a maximum statutory penalty of up to life in prison, a fine up to $100,000, and term of supervised release not more than five years.

According to a plea agreement, Diana Toebbe will serve a sentence of not more than 36 months of imprisonment in federal prison, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a release.

RELATED:

• Annapolis Espionage Trial Postponed Until 2022: Report
• Annapolis Spy Suspect Must Stay In Prison Until Trial: Report
• MD Couple Faces Espionage Charges Over Secret Data: FBI

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