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Cumberland County: Spring Lake man charged with leaking defense information

The Justice Department named James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, and a Tuesday FBI arrest. The News & Observer independently cited the indictment. WRAL used different wording on what he posted.

ConfirmedThe main facts are confirmed by official or first-hand sources.

By Triangle Local Newsroom · Published

The Market House on Hay Street in downtown Fayetteville

File photo: Epicjeff (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

What we know

Confirmed

  • The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs, in a Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, release, named James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake, as a former U.S. government contractor arrested Tuesday by the FBI.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026
  • That release said an indictment unsealed Tuesday charged him with unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and with theft of government property.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026
  • The News & Observer, posted 11:55 a.m. Friday by Faith Wardwell and independently citing the department and the indictment, also named Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake, and wrote that the FBI arrested him this week.Confirmed by The News & Observer (Oct. 30, 2026, 11:55 a.m.)
  • WRAL, posted 11:09 a.m. Eastern Friday, independently named him, used Spring Lake, and wrote that the FBI arrested a former North Carolina government contractor for posting national defense information on social media.Confirmed by WRAL (datePublished 15:09 UTC Oct. 30, 2026)
  • CBS 17, posted 11:30 a.m. Eastern Friday and citing a news release it attributed to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, independently named him and wrote that he was charged Tuesday. The page we read is the Justice Department Office of Public Affairs notice; we could not load a separate Eastern District page.Confirmed by CBS 17 (posted Oct. 30, 2026, 11:30 a.m. ET); U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs
  • The department wrote that, beginning in or about 2021, he worked for a private company that provided security and emergency management services at the U.S. Army Special Operations Command facility at Fort Bragg, and that he held a Top Secret clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information access.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026
  • The department, citing the indictment, said he photographed and removed videos and photographs of classified military operations without authorization and sent them to a social media site, and that other users later re-posted the material on a second site.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026
  • The department wrote that he asked a social media user in a private message to take some of that material down and that he said he was "trying to do some damage control." A search of his residence, that page said, found a classified award write-up with more protected material and a night-vision goggle system tied to a unit inside Army Special Operations Command that had been reported missing.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026
  • The News & Observer wrote that the job lasted through March 2024, that the images were classified as "secret," and that the private message, as printed from the indictment, also asked the user to "take 'em down, tuck them away, and repost them in a year or two when my contract ends lol." The department page we read did not print the March 2024 end date, the "secret" label, or that longer message.Confirmed by The News & Observer only (Oct. 30, 2026, 11:55 a.m.)
  • The newspaper also printed indictment language that he knew the stolen classified materials related to the national defense and that disclosure could injure the United States or help a foreign nation. The department page we read did not reprint that sentence.Confirmed by The News & Observer only (Oct. 30, 2026, 11:55 a.m.)
  • WRAL's abstract and a later paragraph said he is accused of posting "top-secret safety information." The department page and the newspaper did not use that phrase. WRAL's page also carried a photograph caption about an unrelated FBI inquiry into a hacking group's claim.Confirmed by WRAL only (Oct. 30, 2026)
  • CBS 17 called the home search a "raid" and wrote that agents executing a search warrant at the Spring Lake home found the award write-up and the goggle system. The department page said "a search of Ashbacher's residence" and did not use "raid" or "search warrant" in the sentences we read. CBS 17 also wrote that it is not clear when he left the job.Confirmed by CBS 17 only (Oct. 30, 2026, 11:30 a.m. ET)
  • The department said the FBI Charlotte Field Office is investigating with substantial assistance from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Division, and that Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook and Assistant U.S. Attorney Logan Liles for the Eastern District of North Carolina are prosecuting. WRAL and CBS 17 both printed the FBI Charlotte and Army CID pairing. Neither printed the two prosecutors' names.Confirmed by U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026; WRAL; CBS 17

Alleged or reported

  • Ashbacher leaked national defense information on a popular social media site, kept other protected material at his home, and stole night vision goggles from Army Special Operations Command.indictment, as summarized by the U.S. Department of Justice (Oct. 30, 2026). An indictment is an accusation. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty

Still unknown

  • The case number on the unsealed indictment. We have not read the charging paper ourselves
  • Which social media sites the department meant. None of the pages we read named them
  • Whether he has a lawyer, and whether he has entered a plea
  • Where he is being held
  • A written Eastern District of North Carolina page we can read ourselves. CBS 17 attributed Friday's notice to that office. The page we loaded is the Office of Public Affairs

What this means for you

Public safety
An indictment is an accusation. Ashbacher is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. This story is not an official or emergency notice. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.

Instructions from U.S. Department of Justice, Oct. 30, 2026

This site is not the Justice Department, the FBI, or the U.S. Army. For the written announcement, use the Office of Public Affairs page linked below. This is not an emergency service. If anyone is in danger, call 911.

What happened

In Cumberland County, the Justice Department said Friday that James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake, was arrested Tuesday on a federal indictment over classified images and missing military gear.

The News & Observer, posted at 11:55 a.m., independently named him and cited that paper. WRAL, stamped 11:09 a.m. Eastern, also used his name and town. CBS 17, posted at 11:30 a.m., did the same and attributed Friday's notice to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The notice we loaded is the Office of Public Affairs.

An indictment is an accusation. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

What the department posted

The Friday release said an indictment unsealed Tuesday charged him with unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and with theft of government property.

Beginning in or about 2021, that page wrote, he worked for a private firm that handled security and emergency management at the U.S. Army Special Operations Command site at Fort Bragg. He held a Top Secret clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information access.

Citing the indictment, the department said he photographed and removed videos and stills of classified military operations without permission and sent them to one social platform. Other users later put the same files on a second site.

He then asked a user, in a private note, to take some of it down and said he was "trying to do some damage control." Investigators, the release said, found a classified award write-up at his residence and a night-vision goggle system tied to a unit that had reported the gear missing.

The FBI's Charlotte field office is investigating with help from the Army's Criminal Investigative Division. Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook and Assistant U.S. Attorney Logan Liles are listed as the prosecutors.

What the newspaper added

The News & Observer wrote that the job ran through March 2024 and that the images were marked "secret." From the indictment, that account also printed a longer private-message line asking the user to tuck the posts away and put them back up in a year or two, after the contract ended.

The newspaper printed a further indictment sentence saying he knew disclosure could injure the United States or help a foreign nation. Those three extras are not on the department page we read.

Where the stations differ

WRAL wrote that he is accused of posting "top-secret safety information." Neither the department nor the newspaper used that phrase. The same WRAL page carried a photo caption about a separate FBI inquiry into a hacking group.

CBS 17 called the home search a raid and wrote that agents with a warrant found those two items at the Spring Lake house. The department used "a search of Ashbacher's residence" and did not use "raid" in the sentences we loaded. CBS 17 also wrote that it is not clear when he left the job.

What we don't know yet

We have not read the indictment ourselves. The pages we loaded do not give a case number, a jail, a lawyer, or a plea. They also do not name the two platforms.

What happens next

The case is in federal court. Triangle Local is not the Justice Department or the FBI. If anyone is in danger, call 911.

Photos

Text-only. No department, newspaper, station, or Army photographs are used here.

Why it matters

A Spring Lake man who once held a Top Secret clearance at Fort Bragg now faces a federal indictment over classified images and missing military gear. Neighbors need the department's own charge list, the newspaper's extra indictment lines, and the wording WRAL and CBS 17 used that the official page does not.

Updates

  1. Oct 30, 2026, 12:20 PM

    The Justice Department named James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake, and said the FBI arrested him Tuesday on an indictment unsealed the same day. The News & Observer independently cited that paper and added a March 2024 end date. WRAL used "top-secret safety information." CBS 17 called the home search a raid.

Sources

  1. Former U.S. Government Contractor Arrested for Allegedly Leaking National Defense Information and Stealing Night Vision Goggles (U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026: James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake; former U.S. government contractor; FBI arrest Tuesday; indictment unsealed Tuesday; unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and theft of government property; beginning in or about 2021, private company, security and emergency management at U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg; Top Secret with SCI; photographed and removed videos and photographs of classified military operations; transmitted to a social media site; re-posted to a second site; private message, "trying to do some damage control"; search of residence, classified award write-up, night vision goggle system specific to a military unit that had been reported missing; FBI Charlotte Field Office with Army CID; Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook; AUSA Logan Liles, Eastern District of North Carolina. Indictment is an allegation. Text-only; no department photos used.)

    Official sourcePublished by U.S. Department of Justice · Checked Oct 30, 2026, 12:20 PM

  2. Ex-Fort Bragg contractor accused of using Top Secret access to leak defense information (The News & Observer, Faith Wardwell, posted Oct. 30, 2026, 11:55 a.m.: Department of Justice said Friday; James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake; beginning around 2021 through March 2024; private company, security and emergency management at U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg; Top Secret with SCI; photographed and removed photos and videos of classified military operations, classified as "secret"; posted to a social media platform; later reposted to a second site; private message to take them down, tuck them away, and repost in a year or two when the contract ends; "trying to do some damage control"; search of home, classified award write-up and night vision goggle system reported missing; indicted Tuesday; unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and theft of government property; indictment sentence on injury to the United States or advantage of a foreign nation. Text-only; no newspaper photos used.)

    Published by The News & Observer · Checked Oct 30, 2026, 12:20 PM

  3. NC government contractor accused of releasing top-secret information, FBI investigates (WRAL staff, datePublished 15:09:05 UTC / 11:09 a.m. ET Oct. 30, 2026: former North Carolina government contractor arrested by the FBI for posting national defense information on social media; James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake; accused of posting top-secret safety information, illegally keeping national defense information at his home, and stealing night vision goggles from Army Special Operations Command; facing charges of unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and theft of government property; company provided security and emergency management services to the U.S. Army in Fort Bragg; top-secret clearance with SCI; FBI Charlotte Field Office with Army CID. Photograph caption on the same page described an unrelated FBI inquiry into a hacking group's claim. Text-only; no WRAL photos used.)

    Published by WRAL · Checked Oct 30, 2026, 12:20 PM

  4. Fort Bragg ex-contractor charged in info leak; Spring Lake raid uncovers stolen Special Ops night vision goggles: Feds (CBS 17 / WNCN, posted Oct. 30, 2026, 11:30 a.m. ET; modified 11:41 a.m.: U.S. Attorney's Office said Friday; news release from the U.S. Attorney of the Eastern District of North Carolina; James Thomas Ashbacher, 37, of Spring Lake; began working as a U.S. government contractor at Fort Bragg in 2021; raid of Spring Lake home, classified award write-up; agents executing a search warrant also found a night-vision goggle system specific to an Army Special Operations Command unit; private company, security and emergency management at USASOC; not clear when he left; Top Secret with SCI; quoted the photographed-and-removed sentence and the re-post sentence; private message, "trying to do some damage control"; indicted on unlawfully transmitting and retaining national defense information and theft of government property; FBI Charlotte and Army CID. Read via the station's public WordPress JSON because the HTML page returned 403 here. Army training photographs on that page are not used. Text-only.)

    Published by CBS 17 (WNCN) · Checked Oct 30, 2026, 12:20 PM

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