Spy Suspect May Have Told Chinese of Bugs, U.S. Says

NYT.com ^

[Sub-Driver]

April 15, 2003 Spy Suspect May Have Told Chinese of Bugs, U.S. Says By JAMES RISEN and ERIC LICHTBLAU

ASHINGTON, April 14 — Counterintelligence officials fear that an F.B.I. informer in Los Angeles tipped off the Chinese government to a covert United States effort to plant listening devices aboard China's version of Air Force One, several government officials said today.

The National Security Agency, the supersecret eavesdropping agency, working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other intelligence organizations, led an operation to plant bugs in a Boeing 767 used by the president of China while it was in the United States for refitting, officials said. The listening devices were quickly discovered, and the Chinese government disclosed the incident early last year.

United States officials have never previously acknowledged the bugging operation, and the Bush administration still publicly declines to comment.

Intelligence officials say they are trying to determine whether the Chinese found out about the operation as a result of an F.B.I. security breach that was disclosed last week with the arrest of Katrina Leung, who officials described as a Chinese double agent, and James J. Smith, a former F.B.I. agent in Los Angeles who was her contact at the bureau. The two had a long-term sexual relationship, court documents said.

Officials familiar with the investigation said that if the bugging operation was compromised as a result of the F.B.I. case, it would be one of the most damaging losses associated with it.

National Security Agency officials are said to be furious that F.B.I. officials involved in planning the bugging operation did not tell them of their suspicions that the bureau had been penetrated by China.

Mr. Smith, who was the top expert on Chinese counterintelligence in the

[Sub-Driver]

treason

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[Puppage]

[Orangedog]

There have been some people who have said that the FBI has been infested with moles on Russia's payroll for a long time. My guess is that the Russians passed the info about the bugged plane to the Red Chinese.

[Vaduz]

Why does the name clintons come to mind

[Conspiracy Guy]

Bugs, " Ehhhh what's up Doc? "

[cynicom]

With a Russian spy sitting in FBI HQs for 15 long years, it is no surprise that China would have their "resident" FBI traitor also.

[optimistically_conservative]

This is a very different story than what we were getting a year ago. Was there an admission before that we did actually try to bug the plane, that we would be hearing this (NSA vs. FBI) now?

Who Bugged Jiang Zemin's Airplane?

Bugged B767 bugs Chinese government

[Yaron]

How appropriate is the donation advert!!!!

[Enemy Of The State]

Ping!

[Former_russian]

Are you working for NYT? I refuse to register. Why not post the whole thing?

[Brian Allen]

Are you working for NYT? I refuse to follow links. Why not post the whole thing?

[Orangedog]

I think it was one of those "cannot confirm or deny" type of statements, but it's been a while and I can't recall exactly.

[Free the USA]

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