( CNN ) -- A former U.S. Army officer has been charged with passing information relating to nuclear weapons and other military secrets to his Chinese girlfriend , the Justice Department said . Benjamin Bishop , 59 , was arrested Friday at work and appeared in federal court in Honolulu on Monday . He was formally charged with `` willfully communicating national defense information to a person not entitled to receive such information . '' Court documents identified the woman as a 27-year-old Chinese citizen . Her name was not disclosed and she has not been charged . She was in the United States legally on a student visa , authorities said . Court documents do not accuse the woman of spying , but an affidavit notes that Bishop met her at a conference in Hawaii where she may have been attempting to target individuals with access to classified information . Investigators say Bishop began a romantic relationship with her in June 2011 and sought to hide it from authorities . Bishop , who had top-secret clearance , is also charged with unlawfully retaining classified documents in his home . He will remain in custody pending a detention hearing on Friday . If convicted , Bishop faces up to 20 years in prison . `` The arrest of Mr. Bishop is just the first step in what is going to be a long process and we are actively continuing the investigation to determine the roles of all those involved in this case , '' U.S. Attorney Florence Nakakuni said . Bishop 's court-appointed lawyer , Birney Bervar , said the charges were devastating for her client . `` He has served his country honorably for 29 years and he maintains he would never do anything to intentionally harm the United States , '' Bervar said . Government officials said Bishop had been in the Army reserves but was activated for about three years before being hired by a contractor . After becoming suspicious of his activities , federal agents conducted wiretaps , physical and electronic surveillance , and searches of Bishop 's home . Authorities would not comment on the extent of potential damage to national security , but said the information involved `` related to nuclear weapons , information on planned deployment of U.S. strategic nuclear systems , information on the ability of the U.S. to detect low and medium-range ballistic missiles of foreign governments , and information on the deployment of U.S. early warning radar systems in the Pacific Rim . ''
Contractor allegedly gave information to 27-year-old woman he met at a conference . Benjamin Bishop charged with passing military secrets relating to nuclear weapons . Score: 6 says he would n't harm the United States . Authorities are not calling the woman a spy , but may have been targeting secret information .