Florida woman pleads guilty to sending military data overseas

Yuksel Senbol, 36, pleaded guilty in a federal court to 25 felonies, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to a Wednesday statement by the U.S. Department of Justice. 

How did the scheme work? The DOJ said that around April 2019, Senbol fraudulently procured government contracts for parts used on U.S. aircraft carriers, submarines, tanks, and armored vehicles. While running a front company for manufacturing in Turkey, she and her alleged co-conspirators misrepresented the company as a vetted and qualified manufacturer of military components. She obtained sensitive drawings of military technology and, while illegally sending the data overseas, used software to evade security restrictions. 

Her alleged co-conspirators, Mehmet Ozcan and Onur Simsek, manufactured the parts in Turkey and shipped them to her for repackaging, according to the DOJ’s statement. The conspirators lied about the origin of the parts, and Senbol wired hundreds of thousands of dollars in criminal proceeds back to Turkey, according to the statement. Simsek was previously convicted in Florida of a nearly identical scheme, the Justice Department said. 

How were the conspirators discovered? The conspiracy continued for a while before being uncovered by federal investigators. According to the Department's statement, the parts were tested and found not to conform to the U.S. military’s specifications. Senbol faces up to 20 years in prison for charges that include one count of violating the Arms Export Control Act. Her sentencing was set for Aug. 6. Ozcan and Simsek are fugitives, the DOJ said. 

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s report in The Stew about how the Pentagon is trying to make secrets safer.