Overview
- Federal agents arrested Tianrui Liang, 21, at New York’s JFK Airport on April 7 after a warrant tied to Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska.
- Prosecutors charged him under 18 U.S.C. §795, a law that bans photographing “vital” military sites or equipment without a base commander’s permission.
- An FBI affidavit says Liang admitted photographing an RC-135 reconnaissance jet and an E-4B “Nightwatch,” and agents report his camera held numerous flightline images from Offutt.
- Liang was released on bail on April 8, then ordered back into custody on April 9 as a considerable flight risk, and he remains detained under those conditions.
- Court filings describe an ongoing probe that withholds some findings because of a named co-conspirator, note planned stops at Ellsworth and Tinker Air Force Bases, and point to heightened scrutiny of planespotting near Offutt, which hosts U.S. Strategic Command and the E-4B airborne command center.