Former Green Beret charged with spying for Russia
A former US Army Special Forces soldier has been charged in federal court with spying on behalf of the Russian intelligence agency GRU. His alleged spying dates back to 1996, before he enlisted, and lasted until 2011. He took multiple trips to Russia, including when he was on leave from the Army.
Debbins first visited Russia when was 19 years old, according to the federal indictment. His mother was born in the Soviet Union, and he met his wife in Chelyabinsk, Russia, where the couple later married. His father-in-law was a former an officer in the Russian military.
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According to the indictment, Debbins was slowly groomed and indoctrinated into the Russian intelligence apparatus starting in December 1996 when Debbins traveled to Chelyabinsk as part of an independent study program, according to the indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia.
He was assigned a code name by Russian intelligence agents and signed a document saying he wanted to serve Russia, the Department of Justice said.
Debbins allegedly shared classified information about his time in the Special Forces, including names and information on his former team members that Russian agents could evaluate and possibly approach those people to see if they would cooperate.
He faces up to life in prison.
Source; NBC News
Category: Army, Blue Falcons, Russia
Finally, we have proof of Russian collusion.
Surprised he was even allowed to join the Army, much less the Special Forces. I guess in 1997 somebody decided that the Cold War was in fact, over.
Guess his new duty assignment will be in East Kansas?
“He faces up to life in prison”.
Should be, “He faces life in prison until he drops at the end of a rope.”
The American CI apparatus appears to be asleep at the switch. Just this week you have the ethnic Chinese former CIA traitor busted in Honolulu, and now this dude with all kind# of connections to Rossiya…
I wouldn’t say asleep at the wheel. If they managed to obtain the document he signed that says he wanted to serve Russia. But yes it is not the era of James Bond, it is much easier to find information on people these days, and much harder to prove without evidence.
Take the Chinese Cancer researcher who failed to mention she was in PLA on her Visa application. We (the DOJ) have a picture of her in her uniform. Her lawyer says “that is what everyone there wears, she is just a civilian working at a PLA Air Force research hospital.” Only probelm with this statement is we (the government) know that only people in the PLA wear uniforms, and their civilian doctors are considered part of the PLA and given privileges as such. The Chinese and their propagandists would like everyone to believe that Mr. Trump and his administration are singling out Chines as all bad, but we seem to be going out of our way only to wrap up the ones we know are bad. Whether we get them on Visa fraud, tax evasion, or actual espionage. Certain people in the press want you to believe it is a “Orange Man Bad” single act, and that they are all innocent and just settling for fake charges…fully admitting how hard espionage charges are to prove. When in fact the Chinese have gone all in on recruiting academics and enticing with money and other incentives. If they can’t them with money, and they are Chinese they go after their family.
You can usually tell how bad it was by the amount of money they received (which is usually inverse to their commitment).
Glad that CI caught them retroactively after the fact. It is vetting and screening and investigation at the front end that appears to be in need of improvement. Understand the civil rights concerns about “profiling“ and all that, but in my mind there has to be much improved security screening at the front end…
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1307186/download
According to the above site:
* Debbins served Active Duty in the US Army from 1998-2005.
* Debbins was a member of the ROTC at the University of Minnesota. He graduated in September 1997 and received a Reserve Commission and began his Active Duty in July 1998. Between September 1997 and July 1998, he lived and worked in Russia.
* From December 1998-December 1999, Debbins served in Korea as a LT in the 4th Chemical Company.
* From December 1999 to April 2001, Debbins served as a LT at Fort Polk, LA with the 7th Chemical Company.
* Around that time, he was selected for the US Army Special Forces and upon completion of his training in June 2003, he was assigned as a CPT to the 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group in Germany.
* Debbins was granted a SECRET Clearance in 1996. In 2004, he was granted a TOP SECRET Clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information.
* While Debbins was with his Special Forces unit, in 2004, he deployed to the Republic of Azerbaijan. The unit was responsible for Operations in Azerbaijan and the Republic of Georgia.
* During the deployment, Debbins was investigated for a Security Violation and removed from his command in Azerbaijan. His security clearance was suspended in late 2004 or early 2005.
* Debbins was honorably discharged in November 2005. He served in the US Army Inactive Reserves from December 2005 to 2010.
And the last two lines you cite there Ninja are a huge problem… Seems that the first of those two should have prevented the second…
Gee Whiz.
This is the same guy a month ago.
“Expert” you say?
Since the 90s? What the hell? He even looks like a Russian Bad Guy!
He faces life in prison. He should face a dozen dudes with rifles, with a masonry wall behind him.
IMHO that’s too dignified of an end for him, therefore a noose and a six foot drop through a trapdoor is what he deserves.
+1k
Vindman’s other brother?
Other brother from another mother. Like Vindy and his for real brother, he has no loyalty to this country and his oath was a sham.
Do the crime, do the time. IMHO he needs to go to prison for life, I have no use for traitors!
Too much time and expense.
As has been said above, a short drop at the end of a rope.
Even if it doesn’t break his neck (too merciful by half), he’ll still strangulate.
Maybe the Russkies will take him in trade for one of our spies. Bet he would love to go back to Mother Russia with his wife.
WAR STORY ALERT: In 76′ while on an Army approved American Express tour of Russia when I was down to a Secret clearance, my (ex)wife and I had a disagreement in Moscow. So on the flight to Leningrad, she sat in the back of the plane and me at a table of six in the front. I was drinking canned daiquiris from the tourist shop in Moscow. Someone asked what I did and I explained I was a US Army officer stationed in Germany. An attractive woman who had been ignoring me suddenly became my drinking buddy. Spoke very good English, claimed to be an engineer returning from Siberia. We spent some time on the town the next few days, dining, drinking, dancing, etc. She never asked any questions or for any information. Just wanted to have a good time. When I returned to Mainz I informed MI about encounter. Several of the agents moonlighted as my night managers and thought it amusing. Then a couple of weeks later I received a letter from her mailed from a US air base in Germany wanting to meet again in a border country. I turned it over to MI and they were considering if it would be worthwhile for me to make the meet but my tour ended. Those were the days.
Classic honeypot trap.
Just what I was thinking, I first read about that in “The First Directorate” by Oleg Kalugin, a retired KGB Two-Star that defected to the US of A!
You missed out on the chance extend your tour, for the good of the service of course, to “work” under covers.
During the 60’s a number of Western Turncoats like Kim Philby did so mainly due to ideology, others because of greed. I honestly wonder WTF would make an Ex-Green Beret want to do shit like that, money? Pussy? Was he caught in a “Honey trap”?…
From what I read, it seems that it was actually the other way around, he became a Green Beret in order to spy, the Russians already had him a code name before he enlisted
Hack Stone’s Code Name is “Unlucky Sperm”. There is only one Secret Agent with the call sign “Lucky Sperm”, and we all know about him.