Posted on 07/04/2003 2:29:22 PM PDT by Fizzie
Alleged Spy Free After Posting Bail Woman's Attorney Confirms Release
POSTED: 9:59 p.m. PDT July 3, 2003
LOS ANGELES -- A woman accused of stealing classified information from her lover and FBI handler to pass on to China was freed from prison Thursday evening after posting $2 million bail.
Katrina Leung was released from the downtown Metropolitan Detention Center at 5:45 p.m., said a prison employee who would only identify himself as Officer Foster.
Leung's attorney, Janet Levine, confirmed that her client was released after posting bail.
"She is pleased to be home with her family," Levine said. "She is pleased with the faith that the judge has shown in her by allowing her to be released on bail and she looks forward to facing the charges against her and being exonerated, as we know she will be."
Leung, 49, is a naturalized citizen and a politically well-connected socialite from the wealthy suburb of San Marino. She was recruited to work for the FBI 20 years ago. She was paid $1.7 million by the FBI for her information as an intelligence asset code-named Parlor Maid.
The federal government contends that she carried on an affair with her FBI handler, James J. Smith. She is accused of taking classified documents from his briefcase and copying them with the intent to use them to benefit a foreign nation. She could face up to 14 years in prison if convicted.
Leung had been jailed since her April 9 arrest. A federal judge granted her bail on June 19 but it took two weeks to complete the extensive paperwork needed to post property and secure a bond.
The judge ordered Leung to wear an electronic monitoring device with a global positioning system at all times, She will be allowed to leave her home only to see her lawyers or go to court.
Smith, 59, is charged with fraud for allegedly filing false reports to FBI headquarters about Leung's reliability and with gross negligence for allegedly allowing her access to classified materials. He could face up to 40 years in prison if convicted.
Both Leung and Smith have pleaded innocent.
Smith has retired from the FBI and is free on $250,000 bail.
FOX NEWS.com (AP): "FORMER FBI AGENT INDICTED IN CHINA SPY CASE" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON -- A federal grand jury indicted a retired FBI agent Wednesday on charges of gross negligence and wire fraud for allegedly allowing his longtime intelligence source and lover access to secrets she passed on to China. The grand jury indictment returned in Los Angeles and released by the Justice Department in Washington charges James J. Smith, 59, for his role in the case of alleged Chinese double agent Katrina Leung. Court documents say that Smith recruited Leung in 1982 to be an FBI "asset" providing intelligence on China and that the two began a long-lasting affair that year. Prosecutors say Leung pilfered classified material from Smith's briefcase when he visited her home and passed the information to Chinese intelligence agents.") (May 7, 2003) (Read More...)
An Interesting Discussion on FREEREPUBLIC.com regarding an ASSOCIATED PRESS article by Curt Anderson as published on BAYAREA.com in the CONTRA COSTA TIMES.com: "ACCUSED DOUBLE-AGENT MET 2,100 TIMES WITH CHINESE OFFICIALS" (May 2, 2003) (Read More...)
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