Benjamin Bishop, a former U.S. Army officer, has been charged with passing information relating to nuclear weapons and other military secrets to his Chinese girlfriend, the Justice Department said.
Bishop was arrested Friday at work and appeared in federal court in Honolulu on Monday, CNN reported.
He was formally charged with "willfully communicating national defense information to a person not entitled to receive such information," court documents read.
Court documents have yet to accuse the 27-year old Chinese woman of spying, though an affidavit indicates that Bishop met her at a conference in Hawaii where there may have been an attempt to target individuals with access to classified information, CNN reported. Her name was not disclosed and she has not been charged. She's in the U.S. legally on a student visa, authorities said.
"The arrest of Mr. Bishop is just the first step in what is going to be a long process and we are actively continuing the investigation to determine the roles of all those involved in this case," U.S. Attorney Florence Nakakuni said.
Government officials said Bishop had been in the Army reserves, but served for close to three years. He was then hired by a contractor. After becoming suspicious of his activities, federal agents conducted wiretaps, physical and electronic surveillance, and searches of Bishop's home.
Authorities would not comment on the extent of potential damage to national security. Other secrets included information on the United States' ability to detect foreign governments' low- and medium-range ballistic missiles, Information on the deployment of U.S. early warning radar systems in the Pacific Rim was also revealed, according to NBC News.
