A top adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was escorted out of the Pentagon on Tuesday after he was identified in a probe into possible leaks at the sprawling department, according to reports.
Dan Caldwell was escorted from the Pentagon on Tuesday, a U.S. official told Reuters. He was placed on administrative leave due to an "unauthorized disclosure," the official said.
"The investigation remains ongoing," the official told the wire service.
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CNN also confirmed the report.
Further details about the nature of the disclosure weren't immediately known.
The Trump administration has vowed to aggressively root out leaks, with Kristi Noem's Homeland Security Department resorting to polygraph tests.
A March 21 memo signed by Hegseth's chief of staff requested an investigation into "recent unauthorized disclosures of national security information involving sensitive communications," according to Reuters. That memo also left open the possibility of a polygraph, according to the report.
Caldwell is a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq and previously worked at the Defense Priorities think tank and Concerned Veterans for America, an organization formerly led by Hegseth. Caldwell, widely seen as an isolationist, played a significant role as a key adviser to Hegseth, particularly in matters related to Ukraine and as the Pentagon’s main contact for the National Security Council during preparations for military action against the Houthis in Yemen. Hegseth identified him as the main liaison for sensitive military plans in the leaked Signal group chat scandal.
