Being accused of illegally accessing close to 200 confidential passport files of several politicians, celebrities and other, a former U.S. State Department employee pleaded guilty on the charges.

The man came clean and admitted that between 2005 and 2008 he viewed the passport information for about 200 celebrities including actors, athletes, musicians, members of the news media, businessmen, game show hosts and also politicians and their families. So far, none of their identities have been disclosed.

The matter reached the court after an investigation conducted by the State Department's Office of Inspector General, which was started as soon as the news about the improper access of the files of three presidential candidates was made public. The matter involved John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton. All of them were called by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to receive official apologies.

The Justice Department stated that 48-year-old Lawrence Yontz faces up to one year in prison and also a $100,000 fine for his unauthorized computer access actions. The sentence is scheduled for December 19.

The court filing states that Mr. Yontz’s “sole purpose in accessing and viewing these passport applications was idle curiosity.” Except for two of the cases, he did not copy, share or sell any of the information, which could weight a lot in his defense. Mr. Yontz’s lawyer, David Laufman explained that “there was nothing malevolent about his actions,” adding that “Mr. Yontz has taken full responsibility for his actions, and he’s eager to put the matter behind him.” He also mentioned that his client is fully prepared to cooperate with the government.