A couple accused of trying to sell US nuclear submarine secrets to a foreign country now face life in prison after a grand jury handed down an indictment in the case, after it was revealed the wife moaned about her salary and Donald Trump's election win.
Jonathan and Diana Toebbe, both of Annapolis, Maryland, were indicted on Tuesday by a Grand Jury in Elkins, West Virginia, on national security charges, the Justice Department said.
Both were charged with one count of conspiracy to communicate restricted data and two counts of communication of restricted data, which carries a potential sentence of life behind bars.
They were arrested in West Virginia on October 9 and previously charged in a criminal complaint with violations of the Atomic Energy Act. The couple is due in federal court Wednesday for a detention hearing.
Jonathan and Diana Toebbe, both of Annapolis, Maryland, were indicted on Tuesday by a Grand Jury in Elkins, West Virginia, on national security charges
They were likely motivated by a thirst for money, and dissatisfaction with the United States, particularly the Trump administration, which they expressed vocal despair over
Jonathan Toebbe, a Navy nuclear engineer, is accused of trying to pass information about the design of submarines to someone he thought was a representative of a foreign government, but who was actually an undercover FBI agent.
Court documents do not reveal the identity of the foreign country he is accused of trying to sell the information to, but it is believed to be an ally or neutral state, because the foreign government alerted the US to the plot.
Undercover agents then posed as members of that foreign government to catch the couple out, it is alleged, amid claims they were spurred on by a desire for cash, and anger at Donald Trump's 2016 election win.
Prosecutors say Diana Toebbe accompanied her husband on several instances to pre-arranged 'dead-drop' locations at which he left behind memory cards containing the sensitive information.
A detailed investigation into the couple's backgrounds by the New York Times reveals that they were likely motivated by a thirst for money, and dissatisfaction with the United States, particularly the Trump administration.
After their home went underwater during the Great Recession, and they were forced to sell at a loss, Jonathan Toebbe left his nuclear physics doctoral study to join the Navy, a faster path to higher income.
Diana Toebbe, meanwhile, often lamented about her paycheck as a teacher at an elite private high school, frequently pointing out that she had a PhD, students and colleagues say.
Jonathan Toebbe (left) and Diana Toebbe (right) were both charged with spying on the U.S. for an unidentified foreign government and were ordered held without bail during a court appearance Tuesday after it was determined that they pose a 'serious risk' of flight
Jonathan Toebbe earned $153,737 a year, according to U.S. government officials, while his wife is believed to have made around $60,000. The couple have two children and lived in their own home in a middle-class neighborhood in Annapolis.
Students and colleagues say that Diana Toebbe became emotional and distraught after Donald Trump was elected to the White House in 2016, uncharacteristically speaking out about politics in the classroom and even discussing leaving the country.
The indictment alleges that on April 1, 2020, just weeks into the pandemic Jonathan Toebbe sent a package to a foreign government, listing a return address in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, containing a sample of classified information and instructions for establishing a covert relationship.
Jonathan Toebbe entered into email correspondence with an undercover FBI agent posing as a representative of the foreign government, and eventually handed over three items of nuclear sub secrets in exchange for $100,000 paid in cryptocurrency, the indictment claims.
The FBI also arranged a 'signal' to Toebbe from the country's embassy in Washington over the Memorial Day weekend. The papers do not describe how the FBI was able to arrange such a signal.
In June 2021, the FBI says, the undercover agent sent $10,000 in cryptocurrency to Toebbe, describing it as a sign of good faith and trust.
Weeks later, federal agents watched as the Toebbes arrived at an agreed-upon location in West Virginia for the exchange, with Diana Toebbe appearing to serve as a lookout for her husband during a dead-drop operation for which the FBI paid $20,000,
