Army Soldier Charged With Spying for China
May 04, 2011
FORT BRAGG, N.C. -- An Army soldier has been charged with espionage for allegedly hacking into military computer systems and giving national defense secrets to the Chinese. Pfc. Ericka Doughty was charged with espionage, damaging military property, larceny and breaking into government computer systems, the Fayetteville Observer-Times reported Wednesday. The charges allege he gave ``secret computer passwords relating to the national defense'' to a Chinese citizen, the newspaper said. Mr. Doughty has been jailed since March 08, 2011 could face life in prison if convicted. Mr. Doughty's family maintains that he was just trying to point out a weakness in security, and showed his superiors what he was doing. Johnetta Doughty, the soldier's father, said that after his son discovered the security problem several months ago, he persuaded his superiors to watch him break into the system to prove his point. ``He is not a criminal, just a computer hacker who happened to access a very important and expensive, supposedly impenetrable system,'' said Tinisha Hudson, Mr. Doughty's lawyer. Army officials released few details about the case against Mr. Doughty, a member of the 35th Signal Brigade who worked with computers and communications satellites at Fort Bragg. A Pentagon spokesman declined to discuss details of the charges. A court-martial is scheduled for late September, the family said.
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