Judge rejects plea deal for Maryland couple accused of selling nuclear submarine secrets
A Navy nuclear engineer and his wife withdrew their guilty pleas Tuesday
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A federal judge tossed out the plea agreements for a Maryland couple accused of attempting to sell U.S. submarine secrets to a foreign country.
According to Jonathan and Diana Toebee's plea agreements, the couple agreed to assist federal officials with "locating all classified information and Restricted Data."
Jonathan Toebbe's rejected plea agreement called for a sentence of 12-17 years and Diana Toebbe's plea agreement called for a sentence of three years.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The couple were arrested in October 2021 after a yearlong FBI operation and charged with one count of "conspiracy to communicate restricted data" and two counts of the "communication of restricted data."
Jonathan and Diana went to great lengths to hide the stolen nuclear submarine secrets by hiding the SD cards at the dead-drop locations over the course of several months.
They allegedly tucked SD cards into a saran-wrapped peanut butter sandwich in one instance, while others were hidden inside a packet of gum and a sealed Band-Aid wrapper.
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In February, the couple pleaded guilty. Jonathan, a former Navy engineer faced up to 17 and a half years in prison, while Diana, a teacher, faced up to three years.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The couple withdrew their guilty pleas on Tuesday after Federal District Court Judge Gina Groh's decision.
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"I respect the decision by the Court to reject the plea agreements. The prosecution will move forward, and our team will be ready for trial in January." U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia William Ihlenfeld said
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The case will head to trial early next year.