The HAM license is smart.
Winlink is a system for transmitting email via radio. There are other like protocols for doing it, but you can do peer to peer email and other types of digital traffic.
You aren’t supposed to encrypt your comms via HF bands using HAM radios, but if you do, almost nobody is going to notice.
I have to believe the NSA has noticed, and took steps to detect, isolate, and analyze traffic via HAM bands.
Especially if the signals were encrypted around f’ing Washington DC.
Like searching for "how to poison someone" on Google.
Or the perps STOP doing things they normally do.
Like not showing up for work the day after someone is killed.
So Nellie just for no reason started using a HAM radio in 2016.
It would be interesting to find out if she is still using the HAM, or suddenly stopped.