FBI Snags Ex-SOCOM Employee for Leaking Downed F-15e Incident Over Iran

The FBI announced Wednesday the arrest of a former U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) employee suspected of leaking classified information about the downing of an F-15e fighter jet over Iran last week. According to FBI Director Kash Patel, the suspect, who once supported elite military warfighters, allegedly passed sensitive details to a media outlet.

President Donald Trump publicly condemned the leak during a Monday White House press conference, labeling the leaker a “sick person” and threatening the unnamed media company with jail time if they refused to reveal their source. For days, the administration and Pentagon refused to confirm the jet’s crash or the pilot’s status despite multiple media reports.

Trump argued that the leak compromised the safety of the downed pilot and rescue operations by alerting Iran that a pilot was stranded on their soil. “All of a sudden, the entire country of Iran knew that there was a pilot that was somewhere on their land that was fighting for his life,” Trump said, adding that it complicated the search efforts and led Iran to offer a substantial bounty for the pilot’s capture.

Despite these challenges, the back-seat weapons systems officer, a colonel, was rescued after a complex operation involving hundreds of military personnel and aircraft, some of which came under enemy fire. The front-seat pilot was also rescued shortly after the jet was shot down in southwestern Iran.

SOCOM, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, was thanked by Patel’s office, along with the FBI’s Charlotte field office, for their roles in the investigation. Patel’s message to potential leakers was clear: “This FBI will not tolerate those who seek to betray our country and put Americans in harm’s way.”

This arrest underscores the Trump administration’s aggressive stance on leaks and national security, continuing a pattern of weaponizing federal agencies to intimidate whistleblowers and suppress information that could hold power accountable.