Ashley Tellis: His recent arrest coincides with the Trump administration’s intensified crackdown on the mishandling of classified information, led by director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who has vowed to pursue prosecutions “without exception”. Photo: X
Mumbai-born strategic expert Ashley Tellis arrested over top secret files, alleged China ties
A veteran advisor on South Asia, US-based Tellis faces charges for unlawfully retaining top secret materials, meeting Chinese official raising security concerns
In a shocking development, Ashley Tellis, a highly regarded US foreign policy expert of Indian origin, was arrested on October 13, 2025, and charged with unlawful retention of national defense information in the US. He was also charged for meeting Chinese officials, according to court filings unsealed this week.
Tellis, 64, has been a prominent advisor to the US State Department since 2001 and played a key role in the US-India civil nuclear agreement during the mid-2000s. Federal agents discovered over 1,000 pages of top secret and secret documents at his residence in Vienna, Virginia.
A State Department spokesperson acknowledged Tellis’s arrest but offered no further details. The Pentagon stated it does not comment on active investigations. Attempts to reach the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Tellis’s legal counsel were also unsuccessful.
His recent arrest coincides with the Trump administration’s intensified crackdown on the mishandling of classified information, led by director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who has vowed to pursue prosecutions “without exception”.
Who is Tellis?
Tellis, a Mumbai-born widely-respected expert on US-India relations, was arrested over the weekend and formally charged on Monday (October 13).
Tellis has advised multiple US administrations and previously served on the National Security Council under President George W Bush. According to an FBI affidavit, he was also working 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.
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Tellis, a seasoned policy strategist who began his government service in 2001, has long been a trusted adviser to both Republican and Democratic administrations on matters concerning India and South Asia.
Born in Mumbai, Ashley Tellis began his academic journey at St Xavier’s College before pursuing graduate studies at the University of Chicago, where he earned both a master’s degree in political science and a PhD. Over the years, he emerged as a central figure in the US-India-China strategic dialogue, frequently appearing on policy panels and earning recognition for his influential writings, which were widely read in Washington, New Delhi, and Beijing.
Classified documents
Court documents alleged that in September and October 2025, Tellis accessed, printed, and removed classified materials from facilities belonging to the defense and state departments. Surveillance footage reportedly captured him exiting one of the buildings with a leather briefcase after printing documents related to US military aircraft capabilities.
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A search of his Vienna, Virginia home on October 11 revealed secret documents stashed in various locations, including locked filing cabinets, a basement desk, and even black trash bags stored in a utility room.
Investigators noted that Tellis was cooperative during the search, using his fingerprint to unlock a laptop and handing over keys to the secured cabinets.
Top Secret clearance
Notably, the FBI affidavit also showed that Tellis held a Top Secret clearance with access to sensitive compartmented information, granted through his roles in government service.
Meetings with Chinese officials
This case has attracted heightened scrutiny due to allegations that Tellis held multiple meetings with Chinese government officials over the past several years.
These interactions, detailed in the FBI affidavit, have raised concerns given Tellis’s access to sensitive national security information and his prominent role in shaping US policy on South Asia.
According to the FBI affidavit, one of the meetings under scrutiny occurred on September 15, 2025, at a restaurant in Fairfax, Virginia. Surveillance footage reportedly showed Tellis arriving with a manila envelope, which he no longer appeared to have when he departed.
Another dinner, held in April 2023 in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., was allegedly overheard by nearby patrons. They claimed Tellis and Chinese officials discussed topics including Iranian-Chinese relations and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.
Court filings also referred to a September 2 meeting during which Tellis is said to have received a gift bag from Chinese representatives, further fuelling concerns about the nature of these interactions.
These interactions, detailed in the FBI affidavit, have raised concerns given Tellis’s access to sensitive national security information and his prominent role in shaping US policy on South Asia. Investigators are examining whether any of these encounters involved unauthorised disclosures, though no formal espionage charges have been filed.
Danger to national security
In a statement, US Attorney Lindsey Halligan of the Eastern District of Virginia emphasised the seriousness of the case, saying, “Our priority remains safeguarding the American people from all threats, both foreign and domestic. The allegations in this case pose a significant danger to national security.”
The Justice Department stated that, if convicted, Ashley Tellis could be sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison and fined up to $250,000.