Hang 'em.
Posted on 11/22/2009 2:51:12 AM PST by Schnucki
An elderly US couple charged with spying for Cuba for almost 30 years have pleaded guilty, with the husband agreeing to serve a life sentence, the US Justice Department said.
Walter Myers, 72, a former State Department official with top-secret security clearance, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage and two counts of wire fraud, according to the department.
His wife, Gwendolyn Myers, 71, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to gather and transmit national defence information to Washington's Cold War enemy Havana, and will serve between six and 7.5 years behind bars.
The pair also agreed to forfeit $1,735,054 – the total salary Myers earned from the US government between 1983 and 2007, when he made repeated false statements to investigators about his security status.
"For the past 30 years, this couple betrayed America's trust by covertly providing classified national defence information to the Cuban government. Today, they are being held accountable for their actions," David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security, said in a statement.
"These guilty pleas should serve notice that we remain vigilant in protecting our nation's secrets and in bringing to justice those who compromise them."
The couple entered their pleas in the US District Court in Washington before Judge Reggie Walton.
The Myers – Walter had been known as Agent 202 and Gwendolyn was Agent 123 – were arrested on June 4 after an undercover FBI sting operation, having allegedly passed on secrets for decades to Washington's Cold War foe.
Shortly after the arrest, former Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who the couple allegedly met in 1995, dismissed the spying charges as a "ridiculous tale," saying the pair deserve "all the honours of the world" for keeping Cubans safe.
US authorities painted a picture of an intricate and brazen scheme carried out since the late 1970s
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
You gotta be kidding me. We have communists in all levels of government, the entire world is in the midst of a world wide communist takeover and we are prosecuting some 70 year old guy for spying for Cuba. Isn’t this a little like worrying about a splinter in your foot while you have a bullet hole in your chest?
Well, I think we can all see how much this has helped Cuba advance it’s position in the world...fidel has turned it from a skidmark on the world map to a “First Class” skidmark. Well done, fidel, well done...
You think the info stayed in Cuba and wasn’t shared with the Soviets or later Russia?
We don’t know what he passed on. At his high security level there is no telling how world events were affected.
The article doesn’t mention motive. Love of World Socialism or money or a combination?
Where is this in the US media?
I wonder why we don’t execute traitors. Otherwise the commies will snatch up some american tourist, claim he’s a spy or currency manipulator, and we’ll trade a traitor for the tourist.
Never fear, Obama will pardon them.
Hang 'em.
The State Department is filled with Traitors.
How come they only caught these two?
They should be executed.
I think it's an effective deterrent to others: If you betray your country we will pursue you and destroy you no matter what your age.
I wonder where the US media is as well. If this was somebody spying for Isreal it would be getting major coverage.
This pair was very similar to a lot of the spies for the Soviets that were active in the US State Dept. during the 30s and 40s. They were apparently well-off, from “good” families (I think at least one of this couple was from New England, which seemed to produce tons of blue-blooded Communist spies), highly respectable, and were living a comfortable and pleasant life while selling out the United States.
These two actually thought that the United States was engaged in evil in its dealings with Cuba, never mind that Fidel Castro himself sought to assassinate John Kennedy (and succeeded).
They are so typical of the Democrats now running the House, Senate and the White House ~ to wit, having third rate minds, warped perspectives, hatred of children and other living things ~ I thought their friend Greg Craig would have tried to spring them.
Hey, Greg just got fired ~ we've all been assuming it was because he screwed up Guantanamo ~ how about he tried to get President Goober to pardon these criminals before they spent any serious jailtime.
There’s a communist/muslim spy in the White House, when can we convict him?
I’d love to have him tried for treason. Together with Nasty Pelousy, Holder and Reid.
Interestingly enough, the WP article doesn’t mention any jail time for the perps. Also the following tidbit was interesting:
“Myers is the scion of one of Washington’s most storied families. His mother, Elsie Alexandra Carol Grosvenor Myers, was the granddaughter of telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell.
Under the plea deal, the couple agreed to forfeit $1.7 million, the total of Myers’s salary over the years, in cash and property to the U.S. government. That includes a prized 37-foot Malo sailboat.”
That was my point!
Indeed.
Since these people hate the US so much and have such admiration for Cuba, I say strip them of their money and exile them to Cuba for life. Let them fully experience their faux utopian little hellhole.
The Cuban government won’t help them - they are no longer useful.
Ah well, it was a nice dream to start the week off...
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