Aldrich Ames An American Spy

1. Aldrich Ames � An American Spy Sell Out: Aldrich Ames and the corruption of the CIA � James Adams Betrayal: The Story of Aldrich Ames, An American Spy � Timrejuvenatedvid Johnston & Neil Lewis

2. Outline Aldrich Ames family history The college years First failed mission � Turkey SE (Soviet, East European) Division at headquarters in Langley �Seeds of Destruction� � The beginning of Ames interaction with the Russians CIA mission to Mexico (Another failed experience as a recruiter of spies) Beginning of a spies career � sold secrets for $50,000 cash Rick Ames � living as a traitor CIA Organo-sclerosis

3. Aldrich Ames� Family History Carleton Ames, Rick�s father � teacher of sociology & history of Europe and the Far East at River Falls Teacher College in Wisconsin Carleton Ames - recruited by the CIA for his expertise on East Asia in 1952 (age 47) CIA�s Project Paper(top priority) - produce an invasion of Communist China by Nationalist forces based in Burma Carleton & his family arrived in Rangoon, Burma in December 1953. CIA arranged for a Fulbright Fellowship, common cover for CIA officers at the time, allowed them to travel around the country doing �academic� research Goal � acquire political intelligence on the country and the different political and military groups and influences Carleton � rated as a poor performer, and known alcoholic Pattern of tolerance in the agency of incompetence and substance abuse 1957, Virginia � Rick�s summer internship at CIA � record analyst

4. Aldrich Ames - College Years Univ. of Chicago in 1959 � 1961 � general coursework First major � history Real passion � acting Joined the student musical/comedy group Became Assistant Technical Director at the Univ. Ambitions to become an actor were dashed in Chicago, had no degree � returned to Washington 1962- applied for a position at the Agency June 1962 � offered a job as a clerk- typist for the CIA

5. CIA Mission - Turkey Moved to Ankara, Turkey in the Operations Directorate � promotion (1969) Turkey borders with the Soviet Union � prime spot for recruiting agents for the US from local assortment of Soviet embassy, trade and press employees 1st year - strong performer 2nd year � proficient performer 3rd and last year � Ankara station chief commented � Rick was unsuited for field work and should spend the remainder of his career at Headquarters Returned to the US, Langley Headquarters in 1972

6. SE Division Rick was assigned to the rejuvenated Soviet Section in 1973 Goal � select Soviet officials for recruitment Next 4 years � received a review of �strong performer� � and then one review of �proficient performer� Notes in his file addressed: problems with delaying key decisions, inattention to detail and disregard for regulations Christmas Party 1973 & 1974 � incidents of serious intoxication 1973 � had to be escorted home by officers of the CIA�s office of security 1974 � Ames became drunk & was discovered by a CIA security officer having sex with another CIA employee (Ames was married) Both incidents were noted in his file with an �eyes only� note � limiting access to the information No attempt to speak to his supervisors about the incidents � attributed to festive exuberance

7. �The Seeds of Destruction� 1973 � Ames temporarily assigned to NY Became the CIA handler of Sergey Fedorenko, an aerospace engineer who worked for the Soviet State Committee on Science and Technology Ames & Fedorenko had a great relationship Result � received a promotion, moved to NYC New job description � run sources at the UN and recruit similar sources from the large Soviet mission there Minor setback(1976) Security incident - left classified documents on a NY subway that identified Fedorenko as a CIA operative. FBI was alerted Documents found with a Polish �migr� living in Queens Received only a verbal reprimand from the Agency Rick�s mindset in 1976 Rick fostered an arrogance in NY � he came to believe he knew more than his peers in the agency Recognized talking to the Russians and not the Agency that gave him real satisfaction

8. CIA Mission - Mexico Prominent assignment - recruit Russian spies - 1981 Mexico � KGB center for Soviet operations throughout Latin America Within the first six months, three torrid and obvious affairs CIA � requirement to report affairs with foreigners Ames & his colleagues did not report the affair Gained a reputation for taking long lunches and returning to the office drunk, or simply not returning Poor evaluations from his superiors Two cases of extreme intoxication Diplomatic reception at the American embassy � loud argument with a Cuban intelligence officer Traffic accident in Mexico City � Rick could not answer the police�s questions & did not recognize the US embassy officer sent to help him Neither incident was entered into his file Changes in Rick�s personal life Rick Met Maria del Rosario Casa Dupuy (Rosario) and began an affair with her (his second wife) Rosario � Native Colombian, aristocratic family but no wealth

9. The Beginning of a Spy Rick promoted to chief of counter intelligence for Soviet operations(1984) Job description � responsible for analyzing selected CIA operations involving Soviet assets, reviewing them to ensure they were genuine & avoid penetration of Soviets in the CIA Rick � targeted possible sources from the Soviet embassy KGB � targeted Rick Ames as a possible spy Boss liked him, colleagues found him unsophisticated & lazy Rick�s personal life Getting divorced, under financial pressure Scam - get money from the KGB - $50,000 cash(May 15, 1985) How the operation began The CIA & KGB knew that Rick would often meet with Soviet contacts Walked into the Russian embassy and handed over two secrets Soviets paid Rick�s price, it was easy Soviets knew he would be back for more money On June 12, 1985 Rick gathered up classified documents and handed them over to his contact (Sergey Chuvakhin) the next day As a result, CIA Soviet operatives began disappearing

10. Rick Ames - traitor Spending Annual salary was around $60,000 Received more that 2 million dollars from the Russians (KGB) Paid $500,000 for his house � cash Excessive spending � Jaguar, jewelry, expensive clothing, trips, etc�. Started rumors that his wealth came from his wife�s in-laws Performance Review Known under-performer Colleagues perceived Rick to be underachiever and lazy Kept making lateral moves, but in high security clearance jobs � always involving the SE Division Alcoholic Heavy drinking at many �business luncheons� Known to have a drinking problem Knowing the System Understood the FBI mode of surveillance over the Russian embassy Stopped reporting his meetings with his Russian contact Took advantage of the strained relations between the CIA and the FBI

11. CIA � Organo-sclerosis 13 CIA operatives disappeared or killed - destroyed the American network of intelligence information of the Russian infrastructure and strategy (20 years to build) SE Division, not self reflective Refused to believe there was a mole from within Rick was secure in his ability to manipulate the situation Poor performer thriving as a spy (over 2 million dollars from KGB) CIA organization did not deeply investigate the disappearance of its operatives Rick�s security breaches were not noted in files Alcoholism and incompetence were normalized Unsuitable candidates were promoted to inappropriate positions