CBS News reports that a retired U.S. Army officer and former civilian Air Force employee has pleaded guilty to conspiring to transmit classified information about the Russia-Ukraine war through a foreign online dating site.David Slater, 64, who held top secret clearance while working at the U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, entered his plea on Thursday before a federal magistrate judge in Omaha. CBS notes that in exchange for his guilty plea, two other charges were dropped.According to prosecutors, Slater "failed in his duty to protect this information by willingly sharing National Defense Information with an unknown online personality despite having years of military experience," U.S. Attorney Lesley Woods for the District of Nebraska said in a statement. Court documents reveal that Slater communicated with the unnamed individual through email and an online messaging platform. The person, posing as a woman in Ukraine, persistently questioned him about U.S. defense plans. In one message from March 2022, the person wrote, "Dear, what is shown on the screens in the special room?? It is very interesting." In another, they asked, "Beloved Dave, do NATO and Biden have a secret plan to help us?"CBS reports that Slater retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2020 but continued working in a classified environment from August 2021 until April 2022, attending top-secret briefings about the war. According to his plea agreement, he admitted that he conspired to share classified information — including details on military targets and Russian military capabilities — via the dating site's messaging platform.“The defendant knew and had reason to believe that such information could be used to the injury of the United States or the advantage of a foreign nation,” the plea agreement states.The original indictment revealed that the coconspirator often flattered Slater, calling him "my secret informant love!" and "You are my secret agent. With love." In one message, she wrote, "Dave, I hope tomorrow NATO will prepare a very pleasant 'surprise' for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin! Will you tell me?"Slater, who remains free pending sentencing on October 8, faces a sentence of between five years and 10 months and seven years and three months in prison, according to the agreement. CBS points out that court documents do not reveal the identity of the coconspirator, whether they acted on behalf of Ukraine or Russia, or the name of the dating platform used. A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office said Monday they could not provide further information.Slater’s case follows the high-profile prosecution of a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman, who admitted last year to violating the Espionage Act after leaking classified materials, including information about the Ukraine war, on a gaming platform.