Former U.S. Air Force counterintelligence specialist Monica Witt has been indicted on charges of sharing American defense secrets with Iranian government officials, the Department of Justice said Wednesday.
An arrest warrant has been issued for the 39-year-old Witt, who abandoned the U.S. for Iran in 2013, according to Justice Department documents.
The indictment in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., charges Witt with conspiring to share national defense information with foreign governments with the intent to hurt the U.S. in Iran's favor.
Witt appeared to hold primarily ideological motivations and allegedly shared information with Iran that could cause "serious damage" to U.S. national security interests, government officials told reporters in a phone call Wednesday morning.
Four Iranian nationals were also charged in the indictment. They are charged with conspiring to commit cybercrimes and identity theft.
"It is a sad day for America when one of its citizens betrays our country," Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers said in a statement.
"It is sadder still when this person, as a member of the American armed forces, previously invoked the aid of God to bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and to defend her country against foreign enemies," he said.
Read the full indictment below: