Former Teacher Pleads Guilty in Assisting Her Navy Husband in the Sale of Secrets

Diana Toebbe, a former school teacher, admitted guilt on Friday to assisting her military spouse in selling official secrets to a foreign country.

According to NBC News, Toebbe, 46, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited data relating to nuclear designs under a plea agreement that allows her to serve no more than 36 months in jail.

Jonathan Toebbe, her husband, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to disclose prohibited material on Monday.

Prosecutors said in court filings that the scheme began in April 2020, while Jonathan Toebbe, who operated on the Navy’s nuclear propulsion program, shipped a package of restricted information to representatives of a foreign government, providing to reveal many more secrets in exchange for up to $5 million in cryptocurrency.

After the US government learnt about the offer, the FBI called him and pretended to be officials of the nation where he shipped the gift, according to NBC.

The nation was not mentioned in court documents. Prosecutors claimed Toebbe first planned to communicate simply via email, but subsequently agreed to save the data on SD cards, which he would leave in predetermined areas.

He sent data four times, concealing the information storage cards in various ways, including half a peanut butter sandwich and a chewing gum packet.

According to court filings, the cards contained blueprints for the Navy’s Virginia-class submarines, which are nuclear-powered fast-attack boats with stealth capabilities capable of firing cruise missiles.

Diana Toebbe was charged of acting as a lookout as he dropped the bombs. According to NBC, a federal judge will decide the duration of her jail sentence following a prosecution investigation and hearing. Both have been arrested in October and are being held in West Virginia prisons.