Former CIA analyst charged for acting as secret agent for South Korean intel in exchange for gifts

The Justice Department has charged Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA analyst and senior official at the National Security Council, with acting as a secret agent for South Korea's intelligence service in exchange for luxury gifts.

Terry, 54, accepted luxury gifts, including handbags, expensive meals at sushi restaurants and $37,000 of funding for her public policy program on Korean affairs in exchange for pushing South Korean government positions during media appearances, sharing private information with intelligence officers and facilitating meetings to allow South Korean officials to be granted access to U.S. officials, the Justice Department said in an indictment.

"As alleged, Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA and White House employee, subverted foreign agent registration laws in order to provide South Korean intelligence officers with access, information, and advocacy," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement. "Terry allegedly sold out her positions and influence to the South Korean government in return for luxury handbags, expensive meals, and thousands of dollars of funding for her public policy program."

"The charges brought should send a clear message to those in public policy who may be tempted to sell their expertise to a foreign government to think twice and ensure you are in accordance with the law," he continued.

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Terry also confessed to the FBI that she acted as a source of information for South Korean intelligence, which included passing handwritten notes from an off-the-record June 2022 meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken about U.S. government policy toward North Korea in which she was present for, according to the indictment.

"Compromising national security endangers every American by weakening our defenses and putting lives at risk," FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Christie M. Curtis said in a statement. "Sue Mi Terry, a former CIA and White House official, was arrested for allegedly acting as an unregistered agent for South Korea. For over a decade, despite repeated warnings, Terry allegedly exploited her think tank roles to advance a foreign agenda."

"As alleged, she disclosed sensitive U.S. government information to South Korean intelligence and used her position to influence U.S. policy in favor of South Korea … for money and luxury gifts," Curtis continued. "Her alleged actions posed a severe threat to national security. This arrest sends a clear message: the FBI will pursue and arrest anyone who endangers our nation's security by collaborating with foreign spies."

South Korea's National Intelligence Service said Wednesday that intelligence authorities in the country are in close communication with the U.S. in regard to this case.

The charges against Terry, who worked for the U.S. government from 2001 until 2011, stem from her conduct after she left the government and worked for think tanks as a public policy expert on foreign affairs.

Terry first worked as a CIA analyst on East Asian issues before later serving as the director for Korea, Japan and Oceanic Affairs for the National Security Council and then as the deputy national intelligence officer for East Asia at the National Intelligence Council. After leaving the government, she began working for think tanks in New York and Washington, D.C., including the Council on Foreign Relations.

Prosecutors accuse Terry of not registering with the Justice Department as a foreign agent.

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Terry said on disclosure forms filed with the House of Representatives, where she testified at least three times between 2016 and 2022, that she was not an "active registrant."

She also never disclosed her covert work with South Korea, the indictment says, which prevented Congress from having "the opportunity to fairly evaluate Terry's testimony in light of her longstanding efforts" for the government.

Terry's lawyer, Lee Wolosky, said in a statement that the allegations are "unfounded" and "distort the work of a scholar and news analyst known for her independence and years of service to the United States."

Wolosky said his client has not held a security clearance for more than a decade and that her views have remained consistent.

"In fact, she was a harsh critic of the South Korean government during times this indictment alleges that she was acting on its behalf," he said. "Once the facts are made clear it will be evident the government made a significant mistake."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.