A civilian employee of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) was arrested and made her initial court appearance yesterday to face charges of unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents.
Ewa Maria Ciszak, 64, of Huntsville, Alabama, is charged with knowingly removing and retaining classified documents and materials.
According to court documents unsealed today in the Northern District of Alabama, Ciszak has been employed at the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) since January 2023. As part of her duties, she held a security clearance and had access to classified materials related to the national defense of the United States. Beginning in approximately February 2025, and continuing through June 18, 2025, Ciszak allegedly removed classified documents from MDA facilities without authorization and transported them to her personal residence and vehicle, which were not authorized for classified material storage.
On June 18, 2025, pursuant to a search warrant authorized by the U.S. District Court, federal agents executed a search of Ciszak’s home, person, and vehicle. Agents recovered multiple documents bearing classification markings up to the SECRET level. Some of the documents had been placed in her personal backpack that day and transported directly from MDA to her home.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg, U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona for the Northern District of Alabama, and Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division made the announcement.
The FBI’s Birmingham Field Office and the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations are investigating the case. Valuable assistant was provided by the FBI Atlanta Field Office’s Savannah Resident Agency and the Missile Defense Agency.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry Cornelius for the Northern District of Alabama and Trial Attorneys Chantelle Dial and Adam Barry of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.