US prosecutors are seeking a 17-year prison sentence for Peter Debbins, the former US Army Green Beret who's pleaded guilty to divulging military secrets to Russia. Debbins “thought that Russia needed to be built up and that America needed to be ‘cut down to size.’”
According to U.S. prosecutors: "Debbins was all-in on the espionage conspiracy before his military career
even began. He signed a statement attesting that he wanted to 'serve Russia' months prior to
starting his active-duty service."
Debbins' defense lawyers, meanwhile, are asking the court for leniency in sentencing. They're also making some unusually (?) prosaic arguments in their memo to the court.
Debbins himself appears to be partly attributing his willingness to work for/with the GRU to ... being gay. 👀
meanwhile, the USG is having nothing of Debbins' pleas for leniency, all but accusing him of lying or being disingenuous, esp. w/r/t/ to his sex proclivities. (i think it's unusual to have another FBI affidavit filed at this late stage).
And the U.S. judge today gives Debbins 15 years in prison for spying for Russia. During today's hearing, Debbins again pleaded for leniency, saying he had been blackmailed: "I have suffered in lonely silence for 25 years...the GRU does not make threats; they keep promises."
full @TheJusticeDept press statement on Debbins' sentencing:
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.