A troubling case has emerged involving a National Guardsman accused of attempting to leak sensitive U.S. military technology to Russia. Authorities have charged 28-year-old Canyon Anthony Amarys, hailing from Alamogordo, New Mexico, in connection with these serious allegations.
Federal prosecutors revealed that Amarys was arrested on Tuesday, following claims he had photographed a U.S. Army installation located at Fort Riley, Kansas. He allegedly attempted to pass on these images to an individual he believed to be a Russian intelligence officer. The charges include an attempt to violate the Export Control Reform Act, underscoring the gravity of this situation.
In a particularly concerning twist, prosecutors assert that Amarys had also agreed to procure and send a helicopter radio that could potentially be utilized by the Russian military. Following these accusations, Amarys appeared in court for the first time on Thursday in the District of Kansas.
As part of the indictment details, it is noted that Amarys met with an undercover employee, whom he thought was a Russian intelligence agent, in February at a hotel in Overland Park, Kansas. During this encounter, he reportedly signed an agreement cementing a “covert relationship” with a Russian intelligence service.
The undercover agent is said to have provided Amarys with a substantial sum of money, intended for the purchase of a Garmin GTR-205 helicopter radio and for capturing photographs of the Fort Riley installation. These actions, if proven, paint a disturbing picture of attempted espionage and underline the ongoing challenges in safeguarding national security.
The UCE gave him thousands of dollars in cash to purchase a Garmin GTR-205 helicopter radio and to photograph a Fort Riley installation.
Soon after the meeting, Amarys allegedly went to Fort Riley and took photographs of what he believed was sensitive U.S. equipment. The FBI said the photography was recorded and observed as part of its undercover operation.
Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopters parked on the tarmac at Fort Riley, Kansas. (iStock)
In March, Amarys allegedly bought the radio, packaged it and took it to a USPS facility in Junction City, Kansas, with the intention of mailing it to Romania, which investigators say would have served as a cover destination for illegal diversion to Russia.
Before shipping, Amarys confirmed in a recorded conversation that he understood the radio would be illegally diverted to Russia and acknowledged he had researched export regulations prior to his February meeting, prosecutors said.
National Guard soldiers walking in uniform on a city street. (Jack Gruber / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Investigators later intercepted the parcel and seized the radio before it left the United States.
Amarys faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million if convicted.
