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A former Kansas FBI analyst was convicted in federal court on Wednesday of illegally withholding hundreds of classified documents related to national defense in her home.
U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough has sentenced Kendra Kingsbury, 50, of Garden City, Kansas, to three years and 10 months in prison without parole. Kingsbury pleaded guilty on October 13, 2022 to two counts of wrongful withholding of documents related to national defense.
An intelligence analyst for the FBI for over 12 years, from 2004 to December 15, 2017, Kingsbury was assigned to a series of different FBI teams, each of which had a specific focus such as illegal drug trafficking, violent crime, violent gangs, and counterintelligence.
She had TOP SECRET/SCI security clearance and had access to national defense and classified information.
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The Seal of the FBI hangs on March 9, 2007 in Washington, D.C. in the Flag Room at Bureau Headquarters. A former FBI analyst in Kansas was sentenced to more than three years in prison for illegally withholding classified documents. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“The FBI investigated what Kingsbury used for the classified documents she illegally removed from the secure workspace, but according to court documents, the investigation revealed more questions and concerns than answers,” the FBI said in its press release.
“Investigators reviewed Kingsbury’s phone records, which revealed a number of suspicious calls. Kingsbury contacted phone numbers related to topics of counter-terrorism investigations, and these individuals also called Kingsbury,” the FBI said. “Investigators have been unable to determine why Kingsbury contacted these individuals, or why these individuals contacted her. Kingsbury declined to provide the government with any further information.”
The FBI said Kingsbury admitted to repeatedly removing a plethora of sensitive government materials, including classified documents related to national defense, from her personal residence at the time in North Kansas City, Missouri, during her tenure. In all, the FBI said Kingsbury falsely possessed about 386 classified documents in her home.
“Some of the secret documents she illegally removed and kept in her home contained extremely sensitive national defense information,” the release said. “According to court documents, Kingsbury compromised national security by keeping classified information in her home that, if it had fallen into the wrong hands, would have exposed some of the government’s most important and secretive methods of obtaining vital national security information. to collect.”
The Justice Department has announced the conviction of former FBI analyst Kendra Kingsbury. (iStock)
The documents Kingsbury kept in her personal residence include documents in electronic format on hard drives, CDs and other storage media.
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The FBI said that the national defense information that Kingsbury kept unlawfully contained numerous documents classified at the SECRET level by the FBI describing sources of information and methods related to the U.S. government’s counter-terrorism, counterintelligence, and counterintelligence efforts. and defense against cyber threats.
The documents allegedly contained details of the FBI’s nationwide objectives and priorities, including specific investigations at multiple field offices that were open at the time Kingsbury improperly retained the documents. Kingsbury was also charged with withholding documents related to sensitive human operations in national security investigations, intelligence gaps about hostile foreign intelligence agencies and terrorist organizations, and the FBI’s technical capabilities against counterintelligence and counterterrorism targets.
As far as national defense information is concerned, Kingsbury is said to have illegally retained numerous documents classified at the SECRET level by another government agency that describe sources of information and methods related to the US government’s efforts to obtain information about terrorist groups. collect.
The FBI said those documents contained information about Al Qaeda members on the African continent, including a suspected associate of Usama bin Laden. The agency added that there were documents detailing the activities of emerging terrorists and their attempts to establish themselves in support of Al Qaeda in Africa.
Kingsbury’s conviction comes amid controversy over classified documents found in the homes of former President Trump and President Biden.
Trump was indicted earlier this month in the Southern District of Florida on 37 counts of mishandling classified documents, obstructing justice and making false statements in connection with material found during an FBI search of his home. Mar-a-Lago home in West Palm Strand.
Secret documents were also found in think-tank offices formerly used by Biden, as well as at his home in Delaware.
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Biden’s lawyers claimed little material was discovered compared to what was discovered in Trump’s case, and said they were working with the Justice Department to ensure the documents were returned to the National Archives.
Danielle Wallace is a reporter for Fox News Digital covering politics, crime, police and more. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter: @danimwallace.
