2000 - The FBI identifies Hanssen from a fingerprint and from a tape recording supplied by a disgruntled Russian intelligence operative. Hanssen's superiors were not amused and began an investigation. He continued to perform incriminating searches of FBI files for his name and address. [4][31], When the USSR disbanded in December 1991, Hanssen, possibly worried that he could be exposed during the ensuing political upheaval, ended communications with his handlers for a time. Undated file photo released by the FBI February 20, 2001 shows a package recovered at the 'Lewis' drop site containing $50,000 cash allegedly left by Russians for FBI Agent Robert Philip Hanssen. He enrolled in dental school at Northwestern University[11] but switched his focus to business after three years. All Rights Reserved. Nor would many other intelligence and counterintelligence accomplishments that routinely but quietly contribute to the security of this Nation. The damage Hanssen did was considerable. Hansen was first married in his native Iowa when he was in his early 20s (via The Cinemaholic). Hanssen's section evaluated Soviet agents who volunteered to give intelligence to determine whether they were genuine or re-doubled agents. Robert Hanssen, FBI Agent Who Became a Soviet Mole. 2023 Cable News Network. Yet some investigators believed anger about how his father treated him as a child triggered a need to rebel against authority. May 31, 2001 - Pleads not guilty to all charges. Robert Hanssen is a former FBI agent who sold highly classified material to Russian intelligence agents for decades before he was finally arrested in 2001. On a 2017blog post, Hale revealed that he had attempted to contact Hansen's now adult children, but was unsuccessful. He went to the Russian embassy in person and physically approached a GRU officer in the parking garage. Later he would convert to Catholicism from Lutheranism. That effort is complemented by substantial FBI proactive investigation of foreign service intelligence officers here and by the critical work done by the CIA. [63], According to USA Today, those who knew the Hanssens described them as a close family. For these reasons, the FBI learned of his true identity before the Russians; they are learning of it only now. Friends of Hanssen later came forward and told journalists that Hanssen had exhibited eccentric behavior, which included an obsession with pornography. For many years, the CIA and FBI have been aggressively engaged in a sustained analytical effort to identify foreign penetrations of the Intelligence Community. He will report directly to the Attorney General and me and we will share his report with the National Security Council and Congress. By. He compromised information about Americas plan of forming Measurement and Signature Intelligence, its bugging plan over the Soviets by digging a tunnel under the decoding room of the Soviets new embassy and data on double agents of the US. It belongs to his wife . [33], Hanssen continued to take risks in 1993 when he hacked into the computer of a fellow FBI agent, Ray Mislock, printed out a classified document from Mislock's computer and took the document to Mislock, saying, "You didn't believe me that the system was insecure." To closely oversee his activities, the FBI relocated him in its headquarters in January 2001. Our joint efforts over the last several years and specifically in this case should give pause to those contemplating betrayal of the Nations trust. [17][18], In 1981, Hanssen was transferred to FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., and he relocated to the suburb of Vienna, Virginia. Darla, who had a masters degree in Education, would earn her own income by teaching learning disabled kids. FBI and CIA personnel who debriefed Hanssen about his 21 years. Through our cooperative efforts, the FBI and CIA were able to learn the true identity of Ramon and the FBI was able to conduct a solid investigation. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. Mislock has since theorized that Hanssen probably went onto his computer to see if his superiors were investigating him for espionage and invented the document story to cover his tracks. He was eventually placed on administrative leave, where he remained falsely accused until after Hanssen was arrested. Director Tenet and I have briefed the intelligence committees of Congress because of the clear national security implications. The priest told Hanssen to stop his illegal activities and donate the money he had gotten from the Russians to charity. As Director of the FBI, I am proud of the courageous men and women of the FBI who each day make enormous sacrifices in serving their country. With the mole finally identified, locations, dates, and cases were matched with Hanssen's activities during the period. Its amazing to live with a man for all those years and not know him.. He was charged with selling U.S. intelligence documents to the Soviet Union and subsequently Russia for more than $1.4 million in cash and diamonds over 22 years. Galey claims that although she offered to have sex with him, Hanssen declined, saying he was trying to convert her to Catholicism. It would seem as though Hansen's children want their privacy respected, and who could blame them? To be very clear on this issue, at no time was he authorized to communicate information to agents of the KGB/SVR. Heres a look at the life of convicted spy Robert Hanssen. Instead, he ultimately became the most damaging spy in Bureau history. The money Hansen generated from his bakery went elsewhere. The prolonged abuse that he endured not only made his childhood challenging, but also chased him throughout his life. Without the current unprecedented level of trust and cooperation between the CIA and FBI, making this case would not have been possible. As soon as they let their guard down, Hansen would attack, brutally sexually assaulting them before finally killing them (per Anchorage Daily News). The level of support and expertise from Acting Deputy Attorney General Robert Mueller, Counsel for Intelligence Policy Frances Fragos Townsend, U.S. Attorney Helen Fahey and Assistant United States Attorney Randy Bellows is superb. We believe it was exceptionally grave. His exposure explained many of the asset losses U.S. intelligence suffered during the 1980s, including the arrest and execution of Martynov and Motorin. (2020, August 28). The crimes alleged are an affront not only to his fellow FBI employees but to the American people, not to mention the pain and suffering he has brought upon his family. Christian owned a bakery and would make his son work for long hours as a kid. [46][47][48], The FBI surveilled Hanssen and soon discovered he was again in contact with the Russians. House Belonging To Former Spy Robert Hanssen Won't Sell. He emerged as one of the most damaging spies to have infiltrated the FBI resulting in probably the worst intelligence disaster in the history of the US. After being released, he met his second wife, Darla Henrichsen, and the pair got married in 1963. [14] The next year, Hanssen was transferred to counterintelligence and given the task of compiling a database of Soviet intelligence for the FBI. His assistant, Eric ONeill, was tasked with keeping investigators apprised of Hanssens movements. After divorcing Robert, Darla was faced with a choice. [34], In 1994, Hanssen expressed interest in a transfer to the new National Counterintelligence Center, which coordinated counterintelligence activities. Troubled by the incident, Bonnie Hanssen made her husband speak with a Catholic priest, who directed him to contribute money to Mother Teresa, the Catholic nun who ran a Calcutta charitable organization, as a form of penance, Brookner said. For unknown reasons[dubious discuss], the Soviets did not act against Polyakov until he was betrayed a second time by CIA mole Aldrich Ames in 1985. Thereafter he enrolled in Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois and in 1966 completed his bachelor degree with Chemistry as major. He was also tasked with observing and learning as much as he could about Hanssens information technology setup in his office and with keeping an eye out on who Hanssen was meeting and talking with. He was made the chief of National Security Threat List Unit of FBI in Washington, D.C. in 1992. ThoughtCo, Aug. 28, 2020, thoughtco.com/robert-hanssen-4587832. Hanssen applied for a cryptographer job in the National Security Agency but was rebuffed due to budget setbacks. At work, he often spoke of his religious faith and conservative values, traits which helped him avoid any suspicion during the years that he was in secret communication with Russian spies. His espionage was described by the Department of Justice as "possibly the worst intelligence disaster in U.S. Waguespack listened to the tape again and recognized the voice as belonging to Hanssen. This included all the FBI activities related to wiretapping and electronic surveillance, which were Hanssen's responsibility. Darla earned a living for the household as well, teaching children with disabilities. His job was to help assemble a database of foreign officials posted in New York who, while posing as diplomats, were actually intelligence officers spying on the United States. In January 2001, Hanssen was given an office and an assistant, Eric O'Neill, who, in reality, was a young FBI surveillance specialist who had been assigned to watch Hanssen. One notable example was the information that the Americans had dug a tunnel under the Russian embassy in Washington to install sophisticated listening devices. Hanssen claimed he was trying to connect a color printer to his computer but needed the password cracker to bypass the administrative password. Today, Mrs. Hanssen is teaching at a Catholic school in suburban Virginia and is living in the house she shared with her husband and their six children. Discovery Company. Hanssen was finally discovered when a former KGB agent contacted American intelligence agents. The most significant information that he shared was about Dmitri Polyakov, who while serving the Soviet Army as a General was spying for Americas CIA. [49][50][51], During his final days with the FBI, Hanssen began to suspect something was wrong. [45] FBI analyst Bob King remembered Hanssen using that same quote. Robert Hansen Remains 'Person of Interest' in Mom's Disappearance As for the investigation back in the 1960s when Joan Hansen disappeared, Urquhart was obviously not working for the Sheriff's office. Hanssen met Bernadette "Bonnie" Wauck, a staunch Roman Catholic, while attending dental school at Northwestern. Both schools are associated with Opus Dei. Hanssen's wife, Bonnie, retired from teaching theology at Oakcrest in 2020. What makes Hansen seem even more grisly than other serial killers was the way that many of his victims were murdered. He urged fellow Catholics in the FBI to attend Mass more often and denounced the Russians as "godless", even though he had been spying for them. He wrote to them anonymously. His father, Howard, a Chicago police officer, was allegedly emotionally abusive to Hanssen during his childhood. WASHINGTON - Convicted FBI spy Robert Hanssen, who's set to be sentenced to life in prison tomorrow, asked his best friend to drug and have sex with . Hanssen warned the KGB that Bloch was being investigated, causing the KGB to end contact with him abruptly. Born In: Chicago, Illinois, United States. During his second round of dealing with Russian agents, Hanssen was much more cautious. For instance, a piece of adhesive tape placed on a sign in a park in Virginia would indicate that a package had been placed in a "dead drop" location, which was usually under a small footbridge in the park. This is particularly timely as we move to the next generation of automation to support the FBIs information infrastructure. A feature film called Breach was released in 2007. He worked in an accounting firm for a year after which he was selected in the Chicago Police Department. Once there, he would turn them loose and begin a human hunting expedition. Sunday night the FBI arrested Robert Philip Hanssen who has been charged with committing espionage. A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. The investigation that led to these charges is the direct result of the longstanding FBI/CIA efforts, ongoing since the Aldrich Ames case, to identify additional foreign penetrations of the United States Intelligence Community. January 12, 2001 - Hanssen is reassigned from counterintelligence to an obscure office at FBI headquarters. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 Hanssen became much more wary. Did you encounter any technical issues? They created a list of all agents known to have access to cases that were compromised. ThoughtCo. After one teenage victim was able to escape, authorities were able to learn her abductor's identity. Brookner said that the only time Bonnie Hanssen harbored any suspicions about her husbands activities came around 1979 or 1980, when they lived in Scarsdale, N.Y. She walked in on him and he covered up some papers, so she got suspicious, Brookner said. He never indicated any political or ideological motive for his actions, telling the FBI after he was caught that his only motivation was financial. Wanting to get a fresh start, the newlywed couple migrated to Alaska in 1967 (per the New YorkDaily News). Hansen and Darla set down roots. For a time he planned to become a dentist, but eventually wound up obtaining an MBA and becoming an accountant. The FBI planned to use it for eavesdropping but never did for fear of being caught. Mark Wauck, an FBI employee and brother-in-law of Hanssen, prompted his superior in 1990 to investigate Hanssen after a heap of cash was found in Hanssens house, but no action was taken. He then applied and was accepted into the FBI. He placed a white piece of tape on a park sign, which was a signal to his Russian contacts that there was information at the dead drop site. In 1995 he was designated as a liaison between the Office of Foreign Missions of the Department of State and the FBI. He married Bernadette Wauck in 1968 and, influenced by his devout Catholic wife, he converted to Catholicism. [23] Martynov and Motorin were recalled to Moscow, where they were arrested, charged, tried, and convicted of espionage against the Soviet government. His twenty two years of espionage against the US began in 1979. He then enrolled at the Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, to study dentistry but after three years shifted to business studies. They never lived the high life; they never even went out to dinner, she said.
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