Retired Army Officer Admits Sharing Classified Russia-Ukraine War Information on Dating Website

A retired Army officer who also served as a civilian employee for the Air Force has admitted to conspiracy charges related to sharing classified information about the war in Ukraine. David Slater, 64, who held a top-secret clearance while working at the U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, pleaded guilty to one count before a federal magistrate judge in Omaha.

In exchange for his plea, two other charges were dismissed. Slater is currently free while awaiting his sentencing, which is set for October 8.

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys have suggested that he should face a prison term ranging from five years and ten months to seven years and three months. The government is likely to recommend the lower end of that sentence.

The maximum penalty for the charge is ten years in prison. Ultimately, U.S. District Judge Brian Buescher will decide whether to accept the plea bargain and set the final sentence.

In a handwritten statement, Slater acknowledged that he conspired to communicate national defense information to an unauthorized individual. Access to classified information carries significant responsibility, and U.S. Attorney for Nebraska Lesley Woods stated that Slater betrayed his duty by sharing sensitive information with an unidentified online personality.

This vulnerability is notable, given Slater’s extensive military background, which should have raised concerns about the motives of the person he was communicating with. Slater, who retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2020, worked in a classified capacity at the base from August 2021 until April 2022.

He attended briefings classified as top secret concerning the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Slater was arrested in March 2024 after allegedly using a foreign dating platform to transmit classified information about military targets and Russian military capabilities to a coconspirator claiming to be a woman in Ukraine.

The specifics of the coconspirator’s identity or intentions remain undisclosed in court documents, as does the dating platform in question.