Former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Daniel Schmidt pleaded guilty on Wednesday to two felony counts: attempting to deliver national defense information and unlawful retention of national defense information, in a case involving his efforts to pass classified material to the Chinese government.
Schmidt, 31, served on active duty in the U.S. Army from January 2015 to January 2020, where he was assigned to the 109th Military Intelligence Battalion at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) in Washington state. As a human intelligence (HUMINT) collector and team leader, Schmidt held top-level security clearance and had access to highly sensitive military information.
After leaving the Army in early 2020, Schmidt traveled to Istanbul, Turkey. On February 24, 2020, he sent an email to the Chinese Consulate offering to provide classified materials from his military service. The information included details about interrogation techniques, spy recruitment tactics, and surveillance detection—core elements of U.S. military intelligence operations.
Schmidt, who had learned Mandarin during his military service, expressed in the email a desire to move to China. He subsequently traveled to both Hong Kong and Beijing, where he reportedly sought to further establish contacts within Chinese government circles.
Court documents revealed that Schmidt was in possession of a 23-page Word document titled “High Level Secrets,” which contained classified information on Army intelligence practices. Another document titled “Important Information to Share with Chinese Government” further outlined sensitive material. He also retained a device capable of accessing secure U.S. military networks, which he offered to Chinese authorities.
In May 2020, Schmidt emailed his sister explaining that he left the United States due to a “disagreement with American policy,” and claimed to have discovered “horrible” truths about the U.S. government.
A federal grand jury in Seattle indicted Schmidt on October 4, 2023. He was arrested two days later upon arriving at San Francisco International Airport.
Although he was initially found mentally incompetent to stand trial in May, Schmidt ultimately entered a guilty plea. He now faces up to 10 years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced on September 9.