Former civilian guard, Bryan Underwood, who worked at a U.S. Consulate that was under construction in China, was sentenced on Tuesday to nine years in prison. Upon his release, he will be placed on two years supervised release.

Underwood, who is a former resident of Indiana, pleaded guilty to one count of Attempting to Communicate National Defense Information to a Foreign Government in District Court in Washington D.C.

32-year-old Underwood pleaded guilty on August 30th of 2012 after his indictment on August 31,2011. He was indicted on two counts of Making False Statements and arrested the next day. He failed to appear at his September 21, 2011 status hearing and was tracked down at a hotel in Los Angeles, where he was re-arrested.

In a statement after Underwood’s sentencing, Assistant Attorney General Lisa Monaco said, “Bryan Underwood betrayed America’s trust by attempting to sell access to secure areas of the very U.S. Consulate compound he was charged to protect. Today, he is being held accountable for his actions. As this case demonstrates, we remain vigilant in protecting America’s secrets and in bringing to justice those who seek to compromise them.”

On September 28th, Underwood was charged in a superseding indictment with one count of attempting to communicate national defense information to a foreign government, two counts of making false statements and one count of failing to appear in court pursuant to his conditions of release.

Underwood was employed as a Cleared American Guard at the Consulate under construction in Guangzhou, China in 2009 and worked at that position until August of 2011. Underwood was asked by U.S. law enforcement to assist in a project in February, 2011 and found himself in a position to use the U.S. enforcement project as cover to make contact with the Chinese.

It was after March and April, according to court documents, when the stock market hiccupped in the aftermath of Fukushima and rising oil prices, and Underwood lost substantially in the stock market, that his plan was sparked.

Underwood devised a plan to transfer information about the consulate, and access to it, for a somewhere between three and five million dollars. He penned a letter to the Chinese Ministry of State Security where he wrote about his “interest in initiating a business arrangement with your offices” and stating, “I know I have information and skills that would be beneficial to your offices [sic] goals. And I know your office can assist me in my financial endeavors.”

Underwood attempted to deliver that letter to MSS but was turned away by the guard there who would not deliver it. Then believing that the Chinese regularly went through the apartment that he was living at, left the letter in the open there in the hopes that they would find it.

Then he set about getting the material. Underwood secreted a camera on his person and used it to photograph areas inside the consulate, some of which were classified secret. A schematic was also drawn up showing all the areas of surveillence and location of cameras. He hoped with this and other information,as well as the photographs, that the Chinese would then be able to gain access to the building to plant listening devices and other electronics.

In early August, he was interviewed by the FBI and Diplomatic Security Agents because of his attempt to contact the Chinese. He told them at that time, he had done so while assisting U.S. Law enforcement. He was interviewed again later in the month, on August 19th, he confessed to his plans at that time.

Underwood was arraigned on the charges in early September. It was after that, before he was to appear again later in the month, that Underwood carried out a plan to disappear leaving a suicide note. It was short-lived.

Underwood left the suicide note in his hotel room in Springfield, Virginia and after buying biking and hiking materials and high energy bars, he pedaled to nearby Wytheville, where he bought a bus ticket under an assumed name.

Underwood was picked up while staying at a Los Angeles hotel three days after the missed court date. He had with him, $10,000 and 80,000 Japanese Yen.

Underwood has been in custody since that time.