The Department of Justice said an active-duty soldier at Fort Bliss is accused of providing information on U.S. military vehicles to Russia’s Ministry of Defense.
FORT BLISS, Texas — A soldier from Texas has been arrested and charged with trying to send U.S. military data to Russia, according to the United States Department of Justice, Western District of Texas.
The DOJ stated Taylor Adam Lee, a 22-year-old from El Paso and active-duty Army soldier at Fort Bliss in El Paso, was arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 6, on charges of attempted transmission of national defense information to a foreign adversary and attempted export of controlled technical data without a license.
According to Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg, a criminal complaint claims Lee tried to transmit sensitive national defense information to Russia regarding the operation of the M1A2 Abrams, America’s main battle tank.
Court documents say Lee is an active-duty servicemember in the U.S. Army stationed at Fort Bliss, and holds a Top Secret (TS)/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance.
The DOJ stated that from around May 2025 to August 2025, Lee tried to use his Army credentials to send U.S. defense information to Russia’s Ministry of Defense.
In June 2025, Lee allegedly transmitted “export-controlled technical information” on the M1A2 Abrams Tank online and offered to “volunteer to assist the Russian Federation” while there, according to the DOJ.
The DOJ stated that in July, at an in-person meeting between Lee and someone he believed to be a representative of the Russian government, Lee allegedly passed an SD card to the person, and said it included documents and information on the M1A2 Abrams, another armored fighting vehicle used by the U.S. military and combat operations.
The Department of Justice said several of the documents contained “controlled technical data that Lee did not have the authorization to provide.” Other documents on the card allegedly were marked as Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), and featured banner warnings and dissemination controls, the department said.
During the meeting, Lee allegedly said the information on the SD card was sensitive and likely classified.
During and after the meeting, the DOJ claims Lee discussed obtaining and providing a specific piece of hardware in the M1A2 Abrams tank to the Russian government. On July 31, Lee allegedly delivered what appeared to be that piece of hardware to a storage unit in El Paso, and sent a message to the person he met with in the meeting stating, “Mission accomplished.”
The FBI Washington and El Paso Field Offices are reportedly investigating the case, with assistance from the U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command.
Trial Attorney Menno Goedman of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathan Brown and Mallory Rasmussen for the Western District of Texas and are prosecuting the case, according to the Department of Justice.
“National security has long been one of the highest priorities of the Justice Department, and here in the Western District of Texas, we remain alert for those who wish to help our adversaries and harm the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas. “Our enemies, both foreign and domestic, should be aware that we diligently investigate and aggressively prosecute these cases. I appreciate the investigative work by our partners in the FBI and the Army Counterintelligence Command, and I look forward to continuing our work with them as we proceed with the prosecution of this important case.”
“The FBI’s investigation revealed Taylor Lee allegedly attempted to provide classified military information on U.S. tank vulnerabilities to a person he believed to be a Russian intelligence officer in exchange for Russian citizenship,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. “Today’s arrest is a message to anyone thinking about betraying the U.S. – especially service members who have sworn to protect our homeland. The FBI and our partners will do everything in our power to protect Americans and safeguard classified information.”