John Murray Rowe Jr., a former defense contractor from Lead, South Dakota, was sentenced to 126 months in prison and three years of supervised release for attempted espionage. He was also fined $25,000. The sentence was handed down by United States District Judge John M. Gallagher.
Rowe pleaded guilty last year to one count of attempted delivery of national defense information to a foreign government and three counts of willful communication of national defense information. According to court documents, Rowe worked for nearly four decades as a test engineer with various security clearances ranging from SECRET to TOP SECRET//SCI. His work included projects related to U.S. Air Force electronic warfare technology.
After being identified as a potential insider threat due to several security violations and concerning behavior regarding Russia and sensitive information, Rowe was terminated from his position. In March 2020, he met with an undercover FBI agent whom he believed represented the Russian government. During this meeting, Rowe expressed disloyalty to the United States and shared classified details about U.S. military fighter jet countermeasure systems.
Over the following eight months, Rowe exchanged more than 300 emails with the undercover agent, confirming his willingness to work for Russia and discussing classified national security information. In one email, he wrote: “If I can’t get a job [in the United States] then I’ll go work for the other team.” He continued sharing classified information during another in-person meeting in September 2020.
Rowe was arrested on December 15, 2021, after being charged by indictment earlier that month. While detained before trial, he disclosed similar classified information during recorded prison calls with relatives and an associate.
“Despite his knowledge, training, experience, and decades of work as a military contractor, Rowe chose to betray the trust placed in him by his country,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “His repeated, willful efforts to harm the U.S. by divulging sensitive defense information to an adversary are inexcusable. My office and our partners will continue to hold fully accountable anyone seeking to compromise the national security of the United States.”
“The defendant spent decades working on sensitive U.S. defense programs and was entrusted with safeguarding protected and classified information about military technology. Instead of honoring that trust and his legal responsibilities as a clearance holder, he chose to violate both – repeatedly and willfully attempting to disclose classified information to someone he believed was a foreign agent,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The Justice Department will hold accountable those who disregard country and conscience at the expense of our Nation’s security, including, as here, out of spite.”
The case involved multiple agencies including the FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office; prosecution came from Assistant United States Attorney Sarah Wolfe and former DOJ Trial Attorney Scott Claffee; additional support came from Trial Attorney Chantelle Dial of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Section; law enforcement agencies such as Lead Police Department (South Dakota), U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations; Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency; FBI offices in Minneapolis and Rapid City also assisted.
