Former CIA analyst Sue Mi Terry charged with spying for South Korea in exchange for luxury handbags | World News

Terry allegedly failed to register as a foreign agent while sharing information with intelligence officials for a decade.

A former CIA analyst has been charged with serving as a covert agent for South Korean intelligence in exchange for luxury handbags and sushi dinners.

Sue Mi Terry, who also previously worked at the White House National Security Council, failed to register as a foreign agent with the WE The Justice Department, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday in Manhattan federal court.

South Korean Intelligence agents reportedly gifted her with Bottega Veneta and Louis Vuitton handbags, a Dolce & Gabbana coat and dinners at Michelin-starred restaurants.

Prosecutors say they also provided more than $37,000 in “secret” funding for a public policy program on Korean affairs that she led.

Terry reportedly worked as an agent for a decade starting in 2013, two years after leaving his job with the U.S. government.

According to the indictment, she advocated for South Korea’s policy positions in media appearances, shared nonpublic information with intelligence agents and facilitated meetings between U.S. and South Korean government officials.

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She also admitted to the FBI that she served as a source of information for South Korean intelligence, including passing handwritten notes from an off-the-record June 2022 meeting attended by the U.S. secretary of state. Antony Blinkenthe indictment states.

Terry’s attorney, Lee Wolosky, said in a statement that the “allegations are baseless and misrepresent the work of an academic and news analyst known for her independence and years of service to the United States.”

He said she had not held a security clearance for more than a decade, adding: “In fact, she was a harsh critic of the South Korean government at a time when this indictment alleges she was acting on its behalf.

“Once the facts are established, it will be obvious that the government has made a serious mistake.”

Terry, who is now a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, served in the U.S. government from 2001 to 2011, first as a CIA analyst and then as deputy national intelligence officer for East Asia at the National Intelligence Council.

Prosecutors say Terry said she was not an “active registrant” on disclosure forms filed with the House of Representatives, where she testified at least three times between 2016 and 2022, but also never disclosed her secret work with South Korea, preventing Congress from having “the opportunity to fairly evaluate Terry’s testimony in light of her longstanding efforts” for the government.