SD card hidden in chewing gum, the US spent 110 billion to build future nuclear submarines, but was sold by a couple for 5 million

An Annapolis, Maryland, couple with ties to the U.S. Navy were arrested Saturday and charged with espionage-related charges after they passed classified documents to FBI agents posing as members of an unspecified country, according to public court documents.

Jonathan Tobey and Diana Tobey were both charged with conspiracy to transmit restricted data and dissemination of restricted data in violation of federal law.

Charging documents show that over a period of about eight months, Jonathan Toub communicated with FBI agents posing as representatives of an unspecified country and passed classified documents via small SD memory cards. Toub would use FBI-arranged intelligence drop locations, including one where he hid an SD card in a peanut butter sandwich, and another in a Band-Aid wrapper and a pack of gum.

Jonathan Tobey is a Department of the Navy employee working as a nuclear engineer in the Navy Nuclear Propulsion Program, while his wife is listed on her LinkedIn as a teacher at Annapolis Key School. According to charging documents, Tobey's security clearance allowed him to access restricted data. On April 1, 2020, Jonathan Tobey sent a package to the unspecified country in an attempt to start a relationship in which Tobey would provide documents in exchange for money.

According to charging documents, the files on the SD card included schematic designs for Virginia-class submarines, which are currently in service and expected to be in use until 2060. "This information was slowly and carefully gathered over several years in the normal course of my job, sneaking through security checkpoints carrying only a few pages at a time to avoid attention," Tobey wrote to the undercover agent, according to the documents. "I no longer have access to classified data, so I regret not being able to assist you in obtaining additional files."

The FBI attaché in the unknown country obtained a package sent to the country in December 2020. The package contained U.S. Navy documents, instructions and an SD card with more documents and instructions for responding using an encrypted communications platform, according to the charging documents. Tobey asked the representative of the unspecified country to set up an intelligence exchange point near Baltimore, Maryland, indicating that he was uncomfortable with not being able to set up an intelligence exchange point himself.

"I apologize for being so stubborn and untrusting, but I cannot agree to go to the place of your choosing," Tobey wrote, according to charging documents. "I must consider the possibility that I am communicating with an adversary who intercepted my first message and is trying to expose me." Tobey ultimately agreed to what he believed was a location set up by representatives of the unspecified country after signaling to an FBI agent posing as a representative of the unspecified country on Memorial Day in Washington.

The charging document shows that he also initially requested $100,000 for the first set of documents, which the FBI paid in several installments (the required amount). The FBI paid Toby in smaller increments, totaling $100,000 by August 28, 2021. Toby requested $100,000 for each of the remaining 49 sets of documents, totaling $5 million. His reasoning was that the U.S. security department had a limited budget and was able to pay $10,000-20,000, but not $100,000 (that is, he believed that the U.S. security department could not come up with $100,000).

“They may offer, but they won’t deliver such a large sum,” Tobey wrote, according to charging documents. “New reports confirm that this is a common tactic used by US security services to unmask operatives. Please don’t take offense at this, but your generosity so far also fits the mold of a tactic an adversary would likely use to entrap me.”

In the same email, Tobey mentioned the only other person who knew about the arrangement, someone he could trust. The FBI believes that was Diana Tobey. FBI agents also observed Diana Tobey acting as a lookout for Jonathan Tobey as he exchanged intelligence. One of the earliest locations for intelligence exchange was in Jefferson County, West Virginia, which is the location the FBI mentioned when it wrote up the charges against Tobey and his wife. Tobey and his wife are set to appear in U.S. District Court in Martinsburg, western Virginia, on Tuesday.

It was also reported that the information sent included relevant information about the future nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines of the US Navy, the Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines. The Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines are the next generation of ballistic missile submarines used by the US Navy to replace the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines. The Columbia-class and Ohio-class are roughly the same size, both 560 feet (170.6 meters) long. The diameter of the Columbia-class is 43 feet (13.1 meters), and the diameter of the Ohio-class is 42 feet (12.8 meters). The crews are divided into two groups, blue and gold, with 155 people in each group.

The Columbia-class design incorporates a nuclear reactor that lasts the life of the submarine, thus eliminating the need for mid-life reactor refueling (which would render the submarine inoperable for several years) as is required for the Ohio-class submarines. This allows a force of 12 Columbias (currently slated for procurement, $110 billion) to ensure that at least 10 submarines are always available, providing the same at-sea deployment capability as the current 14 Ohio-class submarine force.

Concept drawing of the Columbia-class nuclear submarine