Israel Matzav

Breaking: Ex-NASA scientist charged with trying to spy for Israel

In what Israel Radio described a few moments ago as a 'sting operation,' an ex-NASA scientist has been arrested and charged with attempting to spy for Israel.

According to a statement by the department, the suspect, Stewart David Nozette, is a Maryland scientist who once worked in varying capacities for the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The department said Nozette, 52, was contacted via telephone by an individual purporting to be an Israeli intelligence officer, but who was in fact an undercover employee of the FBI (UCE).

"During that call," the statement said, "Nozette agreed to meet with the UCE later that day at a hotel in Washington D.C. According to the affidavit, Nozette met with the UCE that day and discussed his willingness to work for Israeli intelligence."

The complaint, unsealed Monday, does not allege that the government of Israel or anyone acting on its behalf violated U.S. law. Nozette is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court in Washington on Tuesday.

Not only is it not alleged that the government of Israel violated US law, according to Israel Radio, the second paragraph of the FBI release specifically states that the government of Israel did not violate US law and had nothing to do with this.

Israel Radio reported that Nozette asked for significant sums of cash - monthly payments of $10,000 or more. He also asked the UCE for an Israeli passport to 'make things easier.'

The real question here is not whether anyone was spying for Israel, but why the FBI and other US security services seem obsessed with the idea that someone IS spying for Israel. I don't have an answer to that right now, except the most simple one: anti-Semitism. But I can't really prove that.

The picture at the top is Larry Franklin (an interview with him is at the last link in this post), the Pentagon analyst who went to jail on a plea bargain in the case where AIPAC employees were charged with spying. The case against the AIPAC employees was dismissed earlier this year.

UPDATE TUESDAY 12:04 AM

The US Department of Justice release on the case may be found here.

Here's the substance of the complaint:

According to the affidavit, on Sept. 3, 2009, Nozette was contacted via telephone by an individual purporting to be an Israeli intelligence officer, but who was in fact an undercover employee of the FBI (UCE). During that call, Nozette agreed to meet with the UCE later that day at a hotel in Washington D.C. According to the affidavit, Nozette met with the UCE that day and discussed his willingness to work for Israeli intelligence.

Nozette allegedly informed the UCE that he had, in the past, held top security clearances and had access to U.S. satellite information. Nozette also allegedly said that he would be willing to answer questions about this information in exchange for money. The UCE explained to Nozette that the Israeli intelligence agency, or "Mossad," would arrange for a communication system so that Nozette could pass information to the Mossad in a post office box. Nozette agreed to provide regular, continuing information to the UCE and asked for an Israeli passport

According to the affidavit, Nozette and the UCE met again on Sept. 4, 2009, in the same hotel. During the meeting, Nozette allegedly informed the UCE that, although he no longer had legal access to any classified information at a U.S. government facility, he could, nonetheless, recall the classified information to which he had been granted access, indicating that it was all still in his head. In the meeting, Nozette allegedly asked when he could expect to receive his first payment, specifying that he preferred to receive cash amounts "under ten thousand" so he didn’t have to report it. At the conclusion of this meeting, Nozette allegedly informed the UCE, "Well I should tell you my first need is that they should figure out how to pay me . . . they don't expect me to do this for free."

On or about Sept. 10, 2009, undercover FBI agents left a letter in the designated post office box for Nozette. In the letter, the FBI asked Nozette to answer a list of questions concerning U.S. satellite information. The undercover agents also provided a $2,000 cash payment for Nozette. The serial numbers of the bills were recorded. Nozette retrieved the questions and the money from the post office the same day.

On or about Sept. 16, 2009, Nozette was captured on videotape leaving a manila envelope in the designated post office box in the District of Columbia. The next day, FBI agents retrieved the sealed manila envelope that Nozette had dropped off and found, among other things, a one-page document containing answers to the questions posed by the undercover agents and an encrypted computer thumb drive. One of answers provided by Nozette contained information classified as Secret, which concerned capabilities of a prototype overhead collection system. In addition, Nozette allegedly offered to reveal additional classified information that directly concerned nuclear weaponry, military spacecraft or satellites, and other major weapons systems.

Also on or about Sept. 17, 2009, undercover FBI agents left a second letter in the post office box for Nozette. In the letter, the FBI asked Nozette to answer another list of questions concerning U.S. satellite information. The FBI also left a cash payment of $9,000 in the post office box. Nozette allegedly retrieved the questions and the money from the post office box later that same day.

On or about October 1, 2009, Nozette was filmed on videotape leaving a manila envelope in the post office box. Later that day, FBI agents retrieved the manila envelope left by Nozette and found a second set of answers from him. The answers contained information classified as both Top Secret and Secret that concerned U.S. satellites, early warning systems, means of defense or retaliation against large-scale attack, communications intelligence information, and major elements of defense strategy.

It's not clear why the FBI ever suspected this guy in the first place. As I noted earlier, what bothers people here is why the FBI is looking for spies for Israel under every rock. After Jonathan Pollard, Israel promised there would be no more spies, and other than Franklin's guilty plea (which probably was a mistake in retrospect) no one has been convicted of spying for Israel in the US since Pollard.

Hmmm.

UPDATE TUESDAY 2:53 PM

The Washington Times fills in some more details.

The criminal complaint against Mr. Nozette cryptically notes that on or near Jan. 6, the scientist traveled to "foreign country A" with two computer thumb drives. Upon his return to the United States, an officer with U.S. Customs and Border Protection "could not locate the thumb drives that been in Nozette's possession when he had left the United States," the complaint said.

Prior to that trip, Mr. Nozette "informed a colleague that if the United States government tried 'to put him in jail' [based on an unrelated criminal offense], Nozette would move from the United States to Israel or foreign country A [not Israel], and 'tell them everything' he knows," the indictment said.

Court records show that Mr. Nozette was under federal criminal investigation over allegations that he defrauded NASA through the Alliance for Competitive Technology, a company he founded. In 2007, federal agents executed a search warrant at his Maryland home and the offices of this company.

From 1998 to 2008, Mr. Nozette worked as a consultant for an aerospace company owned by Israel [probably Israel Aircraft or one of its subsidiaries. CiJ], according to court records. Mr. Nozette provided answers to technical questions posed by the company every month and received regular payments that totaled $225,000, the court papers said.

But if (as it appears) he actually transferred information to 'Country A,' why didn't they arrest him for that? Why didn't they use 'Country A' to entrap him? Why did the FBI drop Israel's name into this?

Hmmm.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:52 PM