Article

2006-10-09 Home Front: WoT

A former Pentagon analyst who passed highly classified intelligence to two Chinese military officers was sentenced to three months in prison yesterday -- far shy of four to five years called for in sentencing guidelines. It is also a far shy from a firing squad as well.
Federal Judge Gerald Bruce Lee said that despite the "very serious charge" against Ronald Montaperto, he was swayed to reduce the sentence based on letters of support from current and former intelligence and military officials. Ahhh...nothing quite like the pungent aroma of a vapor-scandel.

Montaperto, 67, who pleaded guilty in June to unlawful retention of classified documents he obtained while working at the Defense Intelligence Agency, said he was trying to get intelligence for the United States from the Chinese officials.

"I never meant to hurt my country in any way," Mr. Montaperto said during his hearing at U.S. District Court in Alexandria. He worked at the Pentagon from 1981 until his dismissal in 2003.

Just what exactly DID you mean? Somehow I'm not finding it likely you just went off to do a bit of sleuthing on your own and just ... happened ... to pass very sensitive info to the Chinese along the way. More to the point -- what's the number on your Swiss bank account?

Neil Hammerstrom, the assistant U.S. attorney, told the court that Montaperto met 60 times with two Chinese military intelligence officers and provided both secret and top secret information during the meetings.

Mr. Hammerstrom asked for at least a two-year sentence, arguing a tough prison term was needed because Montaperto "repeatedly placed in jeopardy sensitive sources and methods pertaining to our national security."

Montaperto told investigators he could not remember the specifics of the classified information he passed to Chinese intelligence, lapses that prevented prosecutors from charging him with more serious spy charges. WTF!?!

U.S. officials said a major U.S. electronic eavesdropping operation against China went silent around the time Montaperto admitted passing the highly classified data to the Chinese in 1988.

Rep. Peter Hoekstra, chairman of the House intelligence committee, said he is concerned by the apparent support for Montaperto from the U.S. intelligence community and promised a committee probe. "You would think that the intel community would set the standard for holding people accountable for mishandling and passing of classified information to our enemies," Mr. Hoekstra said.

You would, wouldn't you -- unless that community is fatally politicized. I'd believe it about the CIA but I'm pretty upset to think it includes DIA.

Among the officials who wrote letters of support were Lonnie Henley, currently the deputy national intelligence officer for East Asia in the office of Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte. Mr. Henley said he has been "close friends" with Montaperto since the 1980s.

Another supporter was retired Rear Adm. Eric McVadon, who currently holds a security clearance as a consultant on China to the CIA and Pentagon.

Adm. McVadon said he would not second guess the case against his friend but could only "recoil at characterizations of him in the press as a spy." He may have passed highly classified documents to a foreign agent that resulted in sources and methods pertaining to national security being jeopardized but a spy? How dare you impugn his integrity?

Oh, I dare. I dare quite easily. And it leaves me wondering whether, and how deeply, the Chinese are also into you, Admiral.

Judge Lee said he also considered Montaperto's "extraordinary" voluntary confessions in the light sentence, which includes three months of home detention and five years' probation.

However, investigators said Montaperto did not reveal or admit the passing of secrets until fooled into making the admissions in a 2003 sting operation while he worked at the U.S. Pacific Command think tank in Hawaii.

U.S. intelligence officials have said Montaperto was first investigated in the late 1980s after a Chinese defector said Beijing considered him one of their "dear friends," or informal supporters of China.

Posted by DepotGuy 2006-10-09 16:21|| || Front Page|| [7 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Montaperto told investigators he could not remember the specifics of the classified information he passed to Chinese intelligence

Rubbish. Utter horseshit. When you sell your soul, you sure as hell remember why you did it.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2006-10-09 19:08|| 2006-10-09 19:08|| Front Page Top

#2 Is there a really ugly Chinese chick involved or is it only FBI agents who go for that?

Incredible. Giving away intelligence programs now only gets a traitor (even if incredibly stupid) only 3 months. Treason = Drunk driving.

Posted by ed 2006-10-09 19:26|| 2006-10-09 19:26|| Front Page Top

#3 Wow. The judge is either a completely stupid dupe or a Tranzi bitch.

Wow.

I hate to rely on Hoekstra. He's got a fair share of recurring Tranzi-ish warts, too, and generates no confidence for me.

Posted by .com 2006-10-09 19:32|| 2006-10-09 19:32|| Front Page Top

#4 disgusting all around

Posted by Frank G">Frank G 2006-10-09 19:42|| 2006-10-09 19:42|| Front Page Top

#5 None of this fits. I wonder if there is a classified side to this trial.

Posted by 49 Pan">49 Pan 2006-10-09 21:05|| 2006-10-09 21:05|| Front Page Top

#6 I'm sure there was. Often the government will pass on strong punishment if the required trial would expose methods and sources.

But it is pretty disheartening to read the public statements of Henley and McVaden. And what's up with the delay in nailing Montaperto??

Montaperto was first investigated in the late 1980s after a Chinese defector said Beijing considered him one of their "dear friends," or informal supporters of China.

Did they think the defector was spreading disinformation? I remember that under Clinton, meetings with the Chinese were scarcely discouraged. But in 88??

Posted by lotp 2006-10-09 21:19|| 2006-10-09 21:19|| Front Page Top

#7 Anyone care to guess what sentence I would get if I accidentally mentioned a code-word program?

Damn sure longer than 3 months.

This kind of crap (along with Sandy Burglar) really hits Me hard. It's most corrosive to morale and breeds cynicism. It's just when some executive VP gets caught taking a bribe, all of us first- and second-level engineers have to take all these "thou shalt not steal" classes.

Posted by Jackal">Jackal 2006-10-09 21:54|| http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html]">[http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html] 2006-10-09 21:54|| Front Page Top

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