WIGGING OUT: Ryan Fogle is shown on Russian TV being busted in his hilariously lousy wig and being questioned later (above). Moscow says he tried to recruit a Russian officer to spy for America.
CODE WORD: STUPID: Russian television yesterday broadcast this image of the ludicrous spying kit- including wigs, a pocket knife and wads of cash- that was found on Ryan Fogle when he was seized in Moscow. (
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James Bond would be ashamed.
Russian counterespionage agents busted an American “diplomat” — wearing a floppy blond wig and carrying a spy kit suitable for a 10-year-old — in what the Kremlin’s media depicted as a super-clumsy attempt to recruit a double agent.
Ryan Fogle, of St. Louis, was caught red-handed on a Moscow street with an amateurish recruitment letter, instructing his Russian target how to sign up to work for the CIA.
The secret? You use that most confidential of secret channels: Gmail.
In return for his information, the Russian was promised a cool $1 million a year plus bonuses, authorities said.
Russian TV yesterday showcased the end of Fogle’s espionage career with a five-minute video that seemed like a trailer for a bad Cold War spy movie.
It showed Fogle, 29, wearing his wig and baseball cap, pinned to the ground, with his hands bound behind his light-blue shirt. He was later shown seated in an office of the Federal Security Bureau, Russia’s successor to the Soviet-era KGB.
The video also revealed what appeared to be the contents of his “Get Smart”-like spy backpack:
* Pairs of dark glasses for disguises
* Two more wigs, one dark, one blond
* A Boy Scout-like compass
* A pocket knife
* An RFID (radio frequency identification) shield
* A street map of Moscow
* Wads of 500-euro ($650) bills stuffed into Ziploc bags
The money was allegedly intended as a first installment to a Russian antiterrorism officer, assigned to the troubled Caucasus region, from which Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his alleged accomplice, brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, emigrated.
But it was the bizarre, one-page typewritten recruitment letter, written in Russian, that drew the most attention.
“Dear friend,” it began, according to state media.
“This is a down-payment from someone who is very impressed with your professionalism and who would greatly appreciate your cooperation in the future.”
“Your security means a lot to us,” it added. “This is why we chose this way of contacting you. We will continue to make sure our correspondence remains safe and secret.”
Then the letter gets down to money.
“We are ready to offer you $100,000 to discuss your experience, expertise and cooperation,” the letter read.
“The reward may be much greater if you are willing to answer specific questions. In addition to that, we can offer up to $1 million a year for long-term cooperation, with extra bonuses if we receive some helpful information.”
In the Cold War, agents on both sides used sophisticated methods to pass on secrets they obtained, using hollow coins, hidden microdots, cipher machines, encrypted messages in secret “dead drop” sites and the like.
Today’s CIA has gone social media, if you believe the letter.
“To get back with us, please go to an Internet cafe, or a coffee shop that has WiFi, and open a new Gmail account which you will use exclusively to contact us,” the letter reads. It instructed the would-be double agent to send a message to unbacggdA@gmail.com and expect a response in a week.
“Thank you for reading this letter. We look forward to working with you in the nearest future,” said the letter, which is signed “Your friends.”
Russian media said Fogle tried to meet with the Russian officer near midnight Monday, but the officer declined. Fogle called him again and allegedly offered him 100,000 euros (nearly $130,000) for his cooperation.
The cartoonish details surprised Russian security officials.
“At first, we couldn’t believe it happened,” one officer said on Russian TV.
Mark Galeotti, an NYU professor who studies Russian security services, was more blunt in evaluating Fogle’s spy adventure.
“If this is genuine, then it’ll be seen to be appallingly bad trade craft — being caught with a ‘How-to-be-a-Spy 101’ guide and a wig,” Galeotti said. “He would have had to have been pretty stupid.”
Russian media indicated that when Fogle was seized near a Moscow park, he had a diplomatic photo ID card with him — another gross violation of the spy code.
The card identified him as “third secretary of the Embassy of the United States of America.” That would be an entry-level position.
His ID indicated Fogle had been in Russia since April 2011. A Facebook page bearing his name hinted he was to return home soon. An April 11 post read, “Countdown to America: 43 days, 2 hours, and 33 minutes . . . but who’s counting.”
US officials confirmed that a US Embassy “officer” was “briefly detained,” but refused to comment on the spy charges.
“We’ve seen the Russian Foreign Ministry announcement and we have no further comment at this time,” State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters in Washington. Fogle’s relatives in St. Louis refused comment.
Russian officials said Fogle was declared persona non grata, and would be expelled immediately after he was turned over to US officials. As a diplomat, he has immunity and cannot be charged with a crime.
US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul was conducting a question-and-answer session on Twitter when Fogle’s seizure was announced. The Russian Foreign Ministry said McFaul would be summoned to its offices today to explain the incident.