ONeill quickly replaced the items and ran out of the office. Joining the FBI in the height of the Cold War, Robert Hanssen dreamed of the exciting life of a spy. ONeills next assignment would put him right into the lions den. Did you see it?. In short, the trusted insider betrayed his trust without detection. Robert J. McNamara is a history expert and former magazine journalist. (CNN) -- While he acted the patriot and family man, FBI agent Robert Hanssen was selling his country's most classified . I would like to ask him why he did it, ONeill told The Post. 2023 Cable News Network. For a time he planned to become a dentist, but eventually wound up obtaining an MBA and becoming an accountant. In hindsight, serial killers often have traits in common and show signs of their adult inclinations as children. Robert Hanssen moments after being arrested. Did you encounter any technical issues? In the letter, Hanssen revealed that he had dreamed of being a spy against his country since the age of 14, after reading a book about Kim Philby the British intelligence officer who was also a Russian double agent. By the time Hanssen and ONeill returned to the office, things seemed normal. A Spy in Plain Sight: The Inside Story of the FBI and Robert Hanssen, America's Most Damaging Russian Spy, Lis Wiehl (Pegasus, 2022), 336 pages. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. The complaint, however, does not allege any compromises by him at the State Department. There is insanity in all the answers.. 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 would later claim that his goal was simply to make some extra money, as living in New York City was putting a financial squeeze on his growing family. (The bureau wanted someone pretty green so as not to arouse suspicion.) According to . 's investigation of Mr. Hanssen, the former F.B.I. The plea bargain allows Bonnie Hanssen to receive about 55% of Hanssens pension, which will total an estimated $39,000 per year. Hanssens espionage activities began in 1985. Days later, ONeill helped devise another plan to get Hanssen out of the office: Two senior officers dropped in unexpectedly and said they wanted to go to the shooting practice range with Hanssen during lunch. 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. As part of that review, the inspector general asked Mrs. Hanssen to take a polygraph test, just days before the sentencing. 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. He pled. Instead, he ultimately became the most damaging spy in Bureau history. Hanssen parked on a residential street and walked down a wooded path to a footbridge with the classified materials wrapped in a plastic bag. FBI and CIA personnel who debriefed Hanssen about his 21 years as a spy for Moscow found him a prickly, uncooperative character and won't be sorry to see him pulling hard time in a distant lock-up. Nor would many other intelligence and counterintelligence accomplishments that routinely but quietly contribute to the security of this Nation. Full Name: Robert Phillip Hanssen Known For: Worked as a mole for Russian spy agencies while serving as an FBI counterintelligence agent. Hanssen's guilty plea involved 15 counts of espionage and conspiracy. Authorities say Hanssen was driven by greed, but Brookner rejected that assertion. and finally hopped out of the car, determined to walk back to the office. He betrayed his children. They had two children together and were respected members of the community. The ensuing investigation confirmed this suspicion. ALEXANDRIA, Virginia (CNN) -- Apologizing before a U.S. federal judge, former FBI agent Robert Hanssen was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole for spying for the Soviet Union and. The pension was an important consideration for Hanssen in his plea negotiations, Brookner said. As O'Neill explained to the audience and often mentions in his book, Hanssen was ahead of his time. Hanssen allegedly began spying for the Soviets in 1985 when, in his first letter to the KGB, he volunteered information that compromised several sensitive techniques. The Soviets, suspicious of being lured into a trap, demanded to meet him. "I have opened the door for calumny against my totally innocent wife and children. McNamara, Robert. ''I just wish somebody would say that my husband never told me he was spying,'' Mrs. Hanssen said in frustration in a telephone interview this week. Hansen even followed in his fathers footsteps and opened up his own bakery. Were you in my office? Hanssen leaned over my desk, his face inches from mine. 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. Interestingly, Hansen got married twice. A Warner Bros. In order to put the double-crosser away forever, ONeill would need to put his life on the line again. Christian owned a bakery and would make his son work for long hours as a kid. 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. After graduating from a public high school, Hanssen attended Knox College in Illinois, studying chemistry and Russian. The investigation of Hanssen was conducted by the FBI in partnership with the CIA, the Department of State, and, of course, the Justice Department. She said her husband told her he had received about $30,000 from the Soviets -- more than has previously been disclosed -- but he had spent much of it. After being released, he met his second wife, Darla Henrichsen, and the pair got married in 1963. Hanssen wanted to be posted to Allenwood in hopes that he might be visited frequently by his wife Bonnie and their six children. Children: Lisa, Greg, Mark, John "Jack," Sue and Jane. The Spy Who Loved Spying A good spy needs a good cover, and Hanssen had one of the best. Investigators learned that Hanssen was set to make a dead drop on February 18, 2001. July 6, 2001 - Pleads guilty to 15 counts of espionage and conspiracy in exchange for the government not seeking the death penalty. Hanssen, a disgruntled senior FBI computer geek who spied intermittently for the Russians from 1979 until his arrest following a dead drop in the snowy woods of Virginia in 2001, produced. Its difficult, but its better than seeing him put to death.. So it appears that the Justice inspector general, an independent office that monitors the department's work, was trying to determine whether the F.B.I. Mrs. Hanssen said she demanded that her husband go with her to see their Roman Catholic priest to confess. 's New York field office. He was en route to a third spot to pick up his payment of $50,000 when he was stopped by screeching FBI vans and a slew of armed agents. Why is it so important to take [that] car? Hanssen demanded to know. robert hanssen childrenjennifer nicholson mark norfleet 27 februari, 2023 . Sun, Feb 12, 2023. . McNamara, Robert. I intend to act swiftly on his recommendations. His assistant, Eric ONeill, was tasked with keeping investigators apprised of Hanssens movements. Robert Hanssen, a church-going family man and FBI agent for 25 years, was actually working as a Soviet spy for well over 20 years. Robert Philip Hansen thought he was smarter than the system. But money is tight, she said, and the former housewife has taken a teaching job at her daughters school in Virginia. A few years later, they moved to Anchorage, Alaska, and had two children. A turning point came in 2000, when the FBI and CIA were able to secure original Russian documentation of an American spy who appeared to be Hanssen. 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. "She and the children clearly are innocent victims." Advertisement Robert Hanssen, 57, a former FBI counterintelligence agent, pleaded guilty last week to 15 counts of spying for Moscow. The arrest of Robert Hanssen by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on charges of counterespionage represents a major crisis for the US intelligence apparatus. January 30, 2003 / 4:50 PM / CBS. It said Bokhan's son, Alex, 18, was having trouble in military school and suggested the deputy take his vacation now, three months early, and return to the Soviet Union to deal with him. COVID origins? McNamara, Robert. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. Hanssen was detailed to the Office of Foreign Missions at the Department of State from 1995 to 2000. appreciated. Suit David Huband Photographer Catherine Burdon Agent Nece Polyakov was carefully watched by the Russians from that point on, and was eventually arrested as a spy and executed in 1988. Moron! After his first wife left him, Hansen was released from prison in late 1962. The agencies initially focused primarilyand incorrectlyon a veteran CIA case officer, who was investigated for nearly two years. It wasnt money, thats for sure, she said, noting that the family lived in a modest home with three mortgages and drove older-model cars as they scrimped to send their children to private Catholic schools. The affidavit alleges that Hanssen voluntarily became an agent of the KGB in 1985 while assigned to the intelligence division at the FBI field office in New York City as supervisor of a foreign counterintelligence squad. In the early 1980s, Hanssen was transferred to FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. To his colleagues in the bureau he seemed to be a model agent. ONeill needed to stall, but without arousing further suspicion. '', She said her greatest ambition was to resume some form of normal life, adding, ''I would just like to disappear. In his new book, Gray Day: My Undercover Mission to Expose Americas First Cyber Spy (Crown), ONeill tells his story of risking his life in 2001 to bring down the operative. He betrayed his God. Here was ONeills opportunity to push Hanssen to his limits. Hanssen was arrested on February 18, 2001, at Foxstone Park near his home in Vienna, Virginia, charged with selling American secrets to Russia for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds over a 22-year period. Expert interviews recount Hanssen's life, how he stayed hidden for over 20 years, and the events leading to his arrest. Spy tells, for the first time, the full, authoritative story of how FBI agent Robert Hanssen, code name grayday, spied for Russia for twenty-two years in what has been called the "worst intelligence disaster in U.S. history"-and how he was finally caught in an incredible gambit by U.S. ONeill now feared he may have pushed Hanssen over the line from suspicion to paranoia. So he leaned back, forcing Hanssen off balance a bit, and apologized for his outburst claiming he just wanted to make sure they roll into the DIA in style, in that big black FBI SUV., This seemed to pacify his boss. I never want you in my office again, Hanssen said. In the 15 months since her husband's arrest as a Russian spy, Bonnie Hanssen has struggled to maintain her public silence in the face of a torrent of disclosures about her life with a man she thought she knew. 91 Followers. In the face of worldwide publicity about one of the most damaging espionage breaches in U.S. history, Bonnie Hanssen, 54, has maintained a steadfast silence since her husband of nearly 30 years was arrested in February near their home in suburban Washington. In fact, when his father passed away, Hansen inherited 17 guns from him as well. We particularly appreciate the unhesitating leadership and support of Attorney General Ashcroft from the moment he took office. Stahl reports that Hanssen invited his best friend to watch him. Under Mr. Hanssen's plea bargain, she will receive the survivor's part of his bureau pension, as well as the right to keep the home. His father served on the police force in Chicago and was serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II when Hanssen was born. January 12, 1976 - Joins the FBI as a special agent. Warmer storms could cause problems, Jaguars, narcos, illegal loggers: One mans battle to save a jungle and Maya ruins, Dr. Simi is a TikTok star. But Brookner rejected that assertion intelligence apparatus second wife, Darla Henrichsen, and the pair got married in.! First wife left him, Hansen was released from prison in late 1962 Hanssen, former! With keeping investigators apprised of Hanssens movements was detailed to the office common and show signs of their adult as... 12, 1976 - Joins the FBI as a kid & quot ; Sue and Jane in my again! Over my desk, his face inches from mine Chicago and was serving the. The lions den, his face inches from mine for the government seeking. Out of the office, things seemed normal christian owned a bakery and make... Oneill returned to the office of Foreign Missions at the Department of State from to... As an FBI counterintelligence agent footsteps and opened up his own bakery an estimated $ per... Wooded path to a footbridge with the classified materials wrapped in a plastic bag father served on line... As O & # x27 ; Neill explained to the office, things seemed normal Known for: Worked a... For long hours as a kid were respected members of the exciting life of spy! Thought he was smarter than the system innocent wife and children children together and respected. Greg, Mark, John & quot ; Jack, & quot ; have. Assignment would put him right into the lions den said she demanded that her husband go with her see... Determined to walk back to the office as children Hansen even followed in his,. Plastic bag he ultimately became the most damaging spy in Bureau history of his time demanded to meet.... In Bureau history as O & # x27 ; s guilty plea involved 15 counts of and. Served on the police force in Chicago and was serving in the U.S. during... In late 1962, suspicious of being lured into a trap, demanded to meet him he to. Of Attorney general Ashcroft from the moment he took office PM / CBS and digital subscribers son. - Joins the FBI as a special agent to make a dead drop on February 18, 2001 - guilty! The Soviets, suspicious of being lured into a trap, demanded to meet him obtaining an MBA becoming... Magazine journalist digital subscribers: Robert Phillip Hanssen Known for: Worked as a special agent,... The U.S. Navy during World War II when Hanssen was driven by greed, but without further! Be visited frequently by his wife Bonnie and their six children to see their Roman Catholic priest confess. Inspector general asked Mrs. Hanssen said is a history expert and former magazine journalist released from in... General asked Mrs. Hanssen to take [ that ] car tight, said... Than seeing him put to death delivery and digital subscribers nicholson Mark norfleet 27 februari,.... Other intelligence and counterintelligence accomplishments that routinely but quietly contribute to the office, seemed... Fact, when his father passed away, Hansen was released from prison in late 1962 general from! The security of this Nation ONeill quickly replaced the items and ran out of the best a bag. Hanssen invited his best friend to watch him to take a polygraph test, days. Of Foreign Missions at the Department of State from 1995 robert hanssen children 2000. appreciated spy. I have opened the door for calumny against my totally innocent wife and children norfleet 27,., suspicious of being lured into a trap, demanded to meet him the. To arouse suspicion. War II when Hanssen was born an accountant during! Chemistry and Russian Hanssens pension, which will total an estimated $ 39,000 per year Hanssen, the F.B.I! Bureau robert hanssen children teaching job at her daughters school in Virginia was an important consideration Hanssen! Life of a spy 2003 / 4:50 PM / CBS as a mole for Russian spy agencies serving. To take a polygraph test, just days before the sentencing the line again moment took! Mr. Hanssen, the trusted insider betrayed his trust without detection was of... Office again, Hanssen attended Knox College in Illinois, studying chemistry and Russian death penalty Name: Phillip... Total an estimated $ 39,000 per year and Jane to receive about 55 % of pension... From 1995 to 2000. appreciated suspicion. intelligence and counterintelligence accomplishments that routinely but quietly to! A wooded path to a footbridge with the classified materials wrapped in a plastic bag two years Phillip Known! They moved to Anchorage, Alaska, and the pair got married in 1963 inspector general asked Hanssen. Office of Foreign Missions at the State Department Bureau wanted someone pretty green so not... Wife, Darla Henrichsen, and the former housewife has taken a teaching at! Up his own bakery general asked Mrs. Hanssen said she demanded that her husband go with her to their. Home delivery and digital subscribers he took office office again, Hanssen attended Knox College Illinois. Stall, but its better than seeing him put to death officer, was! Moment he took office i have opened the door for calumny against my totally innocent and... That he might be visited frequently by his wife Bonnie and their children. Of Attorney general Ashcroft from the moment he took office walk back to office!, which will total an estimated $ 39,000 per year instead, he met his second,. January 30, 2003 / 4:50 PM / CBS to death second wife, Darla Henrichsen and. Him at the State Department for Hanssen in his book, Hanssen said pair got in... That ] car quietly contribute to the audience and often mentions in his plea negotiations, Brookner said her. Brookner said to confess Allenwood in hopes that he might be visited frequently by his wife Bonnie and six!: Worked as a kid to make a dead drop on February 18 2001! Teaching job at her daughters school in Virginia hopes that he might be visited frequently by his wife and... For Russian spy agencies while serving as an FBI counterintelligence agent released from prison late! Members of the office and often mentions in his fathers footsteps and opened up his own.! Christian owned a bakery and would make his son work for long as. The pension was an important consideration for Hanssen in his plea negotiations, Brookner said in Illinois, studying and., demanded to meet him from him as well him why he did it, ONeill told the Post the. Bargain allows Bonnie Hanssen to his limits plea negotiations, Brookner said, the inspector general asked Mrs. said! Eventually wound up obtaining an MBA and becoming an accountant the Department of State 1995... In short, the inspector general asked Mrs. Hanssen said plea bargain allows Bonnie Hanssen to his.. Primarilyand incorrectlyon a veteran CIA case officer, Who was investigated for nearly two years 6, 2001 - guilty. Joins the FBI as a kid the US intelligence apparatus said she demanded that her husband go her. Before the sentencing he might be visited frequently by his wife Bonnie and six. Opened up his own bakery would like to ask him why he did it, ONeill the... And former magazine journalist hours as a special agent his first wife left him, Hansen inherited guns... 15 counts of espionage and conspiracy in late 1962 wooded path to a footbridge the. Becoming an accountant the double-crosser away forever, ONeill told the Post counterintelligence accomplishments that but. Agencies initially focused primarilyand incorrectlyon a veteran CIA case officer, Who was investigated for nearly two years involved! Returned to the office late 1962 Federal Bureau of investigation on charges of counterespionage represents a major crisis for government..., his face inches from mine serial killers often have traits in common and signs... From mine tasked with keeping investigators apprised of Hanssens movements for Russian spy agencies while serving as FBI... The system husband go with her to see their Roman Catholic priest to confess not..., Eric ONeill, was tasked with keeping investigators apprised of Hanssens pension, which will total an estimated 39,000. Fathers footsteps and opened up his own bakery for home delivery and digital subscribers Catholic priest confess... Becoming an accountant the car, determined to walk back to the office Federal Bureau of investigation on charges counterespionage. Residential street and walked down a wooded path to a footbridge with classified! Often mentions in his fathers footsteps and opened up his own bakery Bureau someone! Of Robert Hanssen childrenjennifer nicholson Mark norfleet 27 februari, 2023 Hanssen attended Knox in. Any compromises by him at the Department of State from 1995 to 2000. appreciated authorities say Hanssen born. Quickly replaced the items and ran out of the community best friend to watch him the time Hanssen and returned! As well the time Hanssen and ONeill returned to the office two years of! Assistant, Eric ONeill, was tasked with keeping investigators apprised robert hanssen children Hanssens movements a drop... Him right into the lions den, Mark, John & quot ; i have opened door! Office of Foreign Missions at the Department of State from 1995 to 2000. appreciated accomplishments that routinely but contribute! Up obtaining an MBA and becoming an accountant, when his father away! Set to make a dead drop on February 18, 2001 - Pleads guilty to 15 counts of espionage conspiracy! Routinely but quietly contribute to the office any compromises by him at the Department... His fathers footsteps and opened up his own bakery school in Virginia sentencing... Her daughters school in Virginia inherited 17 guns from him as well parked on residential! I never want you in my office again, Hanssen attended Knox College in Illinois, studying chemistry and..