Former federal employee pleads guilty to mishandling classified materials

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A former employee of a U.S. Department of Defense component agency pleaded guilty to mishandling sensitive documents and faces up to five years in federal prison.

Margaret Anne Ashby, 26, of Nevada, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to an information charging her with unauthorized removal/retention of classified documents, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

The guilty plea subjects Ashby to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison, substantial financial penalties, and up to three years of supervised release upon completion of any prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

“Maintaining confidentiality of sensitive government documents is essential to protecting our citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “Those granted the privilege of working with such material are well aware of the rules regarding the safekeeping of these documents, and also are aware of the consequences for failing to comply with those rules.”

As described in the plea agreement, starting in March 2020, Ashby was a civilian employee of a Department of Defense component agency located in the Southern District of Georgia, and during this time held a Top Secret security clearance as required for her employment.

From February 2022 to May 2022, Ashby, without authority, knowingly removed documents and materials containing classified information “concerning the national defense or foreign relations of the United States . . . with the intent to retain them at unauthorized locations, including her residence in the Southern District of Georgia and in digital files saved via a personal computing device located in the Southern District of Georgia.”

U.S. District Court Judge J. Randal Hall will schedule a sentencing hearing for Ashby upon completion of a pre-sentence investigation by U.S. Probation Services.

“When people violate the trust given to them to safeguard our nation’s intelligence, they put our country at risk,” said FBI Atlanta Assistant Agent in Charge Brian Ozden. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will seek to hold accountable those who knowingly and willfully mishandle classified information.”

The case was investigated by the FBI, and prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Assistant U.S. Attorneys L. Alexander Hamner and Darron J. Hubbard, and Trial Attorney David J. Ryan with the U.S. Department of Justice Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

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