A prominent US analyst of Indian origin and longtime adviser on South Asia policy has been arrested for allegedly hoarding classified documents and meeting Chinese government officials, according to court filings unsealed this week.
The Justice Department said Ashley Tellis, 64, unlawfully retained national defence information, including more than a thousand pages of top secret and secret documents found at his home in Vienna, Virginia.
Tellis, a respected voice on US-India relations who has served under multiple administrations, was arrested over the weekend and formally charged on Monday. He worked on the National Security Council under President George W. Bush and is listed in an FBI affidavit as an unpaid adviser to the State Department and a contractor with the Pentagon’s Office of Net Assessment.
He is also a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington think tank. A State Department official confirmed the arrest but declined further comment. The Pentagon said it does not comment on ongoing cases. Carnegie and Tellis’s lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment.
WHO IS ASHLEY TELLIS
Tellis, a veteran policy strategist who joined the US government in 2001, has advised both Republican and Democratic administrations on India and South Asia. His arrest comes at a time when the Trump administration and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard have adopted a tough stance on the mishandling of classified material, pledging to prosecute offenders “without exception.”
Mumbai-born Tellis studied at St. Xavier’s College before earning a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He also holds an MA in political science from the University of Chicago. Over the years, Tellis became a fixture in the US-India-China policy circuit — a familiar face on panels and a respected voice whose writings were closely followed in Washington, New Delhi, and Beijing alike.
ALLEGED BREACH OF NATIONAL SECURITY
Court records allege that Tellis accessed, printed, and removed classified material from both Defense and State Department buildings in September and October. Surveillance footage reportedly showed him leaving one facility with a leather briefcase after printing classified files related to US military aircraft capabilities.
A search warrant executed on October 11 uncovered secret papers stored across multiple spots in his home — including locked filing cabinets, a desk in his basement office, and even black trash bags in a storage room.
Investigators say Tellis cooperated during the search, unlocking a laptop with his fingerprint and providing keys to the filing cabinets. According to the FBI affidavit, Tellis held a Top Secret security clearance with access to Sensitive Compartmented Information due to his government roles.
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MEETING WITH CHINESE OFFICIALS
The case has drawn further attention because Tellis allegedly met Chinese government officials several times over recent years. One such meeting, according to the FBI, took place on September 15, at a restaurant in Fairfax, Virginia. Agents said Tellis was seen arriving with a manila envelope that he no longer appeared to have when he left.
Another dinner in April 2023, in the Washington, D.C. suburbs, was overheard by nearby patrons, who said Tellis and the Chinese officials discussed Iranian-Chinese relations and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence.Court filings also describe a September 2 meeting during which Tellis allegedly received a gift bag from Chinese officials.
PROSECUTORS CITE “GRAVE RISK" TO US SECURITY
In a statement, US Attorney Lindsey Halligan for the Eastern District of Virginia said: “We are fully focused on protecting the American people from all threats, foreign and domestic." The charges as alleged in this case represent a grave risk to the safety and security of our citizens.” If convicted, Tellis faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, the Justice Department said.
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