Johnathan Buma was arrested in New York while waiting to board an international flight.
An FBI agent who accused the bureau of political bias during President Donald Trump’s first administration has been arrested on charges related to the alleged unauthorized disclosure of confidential information.
Johnathan Buma, a 15-year veteran of the FBI, was taken into custody on Monday at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport while waiting to board a flight out of the country, according to his charging documents filed on Tuesday.
According to court filings, Buma allegedly shared internal documents and other sensitive information when he circulated a draft of a book about his career as an FBI agent among his associates.
“The book draft contained information that Buma obtained through his position as an FBI Special Agent that relates to the FBI’s efforts and investigations into a foreign country’s weapons of mass destruction program,” a criminal complaint reads.
The complaint alleges that beginning in October 2023, Buma “printed approximately 130 files from the FBI’s internal network,” some of which contained classified details from confidential informants. Several of these documents were “clearly marked with warnings” indicating they were protected information.
Buma also printed nine documents containing text that had been “copied and pasted from reports” that were marked as protected information and contained information from confidential informants, the complaint alleges.
After obtaining the materials, Buma allegedly informed FBI supervisors of his intention to take unpaid leave before departing from his office. Authorities said that in the ensuing months, he circulated a draft of his book via email to several individuals assisting him in negotiating a book deal and purported to authorize them to share confidential information.
The charges were filed in the U.S. Central District of California, where Buma has a home.
Buma spoke out against the FBI prior to the alleged misconduct. In July 2023, he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, accusing senior bureau officials of suppressing intelligence related to his investigations into Trump’s former attorney Rudy Giuliani and claimed he faced retaliation as a result.
“I do not fully understand why I have been singled out for this treatment nor who exactly is driving it,” Buma said in a testimony to the Senate committee. “But my strong suspicion is that one or more of my sources provided truthful, accurate information that is harmful to a person or persons that higher-ups in the Bureau are trying to shield.”
By Bill Pan
