A member of the New Mexico National Guard, Canyon Anthony Amarys, 28, was arrested on October 28 following an indictment alleging he attempted to violate the Export Control Reform Act. Amarys is scheduled to appear in federal court in the District of Kansas today.
According to the indictment, Amarys met in February 2025 with an individual he believed to be a Russian intelligence agent. During this meeting, he signed a document confirming what he understood as a covert relationship with a Russian intelligence service. As part of this arrangement, prosecutors allege that Amarys agreed to take photographs of a military installation at Fort Riley, Kansas, and acquire a helicopter radio intended for use by the Russian military.
The indictment further states that in March 2025, after purchasing the helicopter radio, Amarys traveled to Kansas to retrieve it and arrange its export to someone he thought was in Romania. Prosecutors claim that Amarys communicated his understanding that the radio would ultimately be diverted illegally to Russia.
Law enforcement recovered the radio during a court-authorized search. The export of such controlled items without proper licensing from the U.S. Department of Commerce is prohibited under U.S. law. The indictment alleges that Amarys acknowledged knowing about these regulations and discussed his research into export laws during his February meeting.
The FBI’s Kansas City field office led the investigation with support from several agencies including the U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command, Kansas National Guard, Department of Commerce – Bureau of Industry and Security, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask (District of Kansas) and Trial Attorney David Ryan (National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section) are prosecuting the case.
“An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
