China’s CIA Penetration, Jerry Lee, Pleads Guilty
The former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operations officer, who post-employment served as a proxy-penetration of the CIA for the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), has pleaded guilty to a single count of “conspiracy to deliver national defense information to aid a foreign government” (China). As we discussed in June 2018 when he was originally indicted, it was unclear if Jerry Chun Shing Lee was a volunteer or had been recruited by China’s MSS to provide national defense information to the ministry.
A review of court documents—including the original indictment and the more recent statement of facts and plea agreement, both dated April 30 and signed by Lee—are unambiguous. From 2010 through 2018, he knowingly conspired against the U.S. and provided classified information to the Chinese MSS.
Indeed, the way he was “discovered,” as discussed in the indictment, left it somewhat ambiguous whether his business partner in their company, FTM International, also had a role in the commission of espionage.
A deeper dive into this individual (still not identified in U.S. court documents) indicates that not only did the individual have long-term ties to the MSS, it also notes with crystal clarity that Lee knew this individual, a former Hong Kong police officer, was working on behalf of the MSS.
In June 2009, the same month Lee left the employ of a “large international tobacco company,” he and the unidentified “partner” began discussing the formation of FTM International (FTM). The company was created in June 2010 and engaged in tobacco brokering. In December 2011, Lee was bought out by his partner for HK$1/share, although the number of shares is not known.
Did Lee Volunteer?
This writer believes that Lee was positioning himself to be recognized as willing and available during his discussions regarding the formation of FTM with his former partner. Lee, a seasoned operations officer of the CIA with 20 years of experience (1997-2007), knew full well that his “business partner” was going to report every iota of information concerning Lee to the MSS, to enable the MSS to determine whether Lee was of operational interest.
On April 13, 2010, Lee applied online for re-employment by the CIA.
On April 26, some 10 months after the initial discussions on the formation of FTM occurred, he and his future business partner traveled across the Hong Kong/China border to the border town of Shenzhen, some 27 kilometers (17 miles), to have dinner with individuals who Lee knew to be MSS intelligence officers.
China’s Pitch
During the dinner, Lee’s business partner was invited to step out of the room. Once Lee was alone with the MSS intelligence officers, they pitched Lee to provide information in exchange for funds. Specifically, they offered Lee an on-the-spot payment of $100,000 in cash and then “take care of him for life” in exchange for his cooperation. Lee no doubt knew this moment was coming, as he had begun maneuvering for just such a meeting in 2009, after he left the employ of the “large international tobacco company.”
A few weeks later, May 11, he met with a former CIA colleague abroad, and reported the approach. He cloaked the meeting as if it had been at a conference (not a one-on-many dinner) and neglected to point out that he had been offered a cash payment and future financial security.
Shortly after, it became clear that Lee had agreed to cooperate and provide information, as evidenced by:
- Requests for information and tasking of Lee to conduct specific actions flow to Lee from the MSS from May 2010 through 2012.
- Cash deposits to Lee’s Hong Kong account from May 14, 2010, through December 2013 totaling hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars.
- Establishment of FTM International in June 2010 and then the buyout of his shares in December 2011.
- Continued attempt to be re-hired by the CIA.
What Lee Provided
While interviews detailed in the court documents show that Lee’s first response was always to minimize and obfuscate, his dissembling was quickly caught and he eventually confessed to the minimal amount of the truth. Even with the filter of minimalism in place, Lee’s provision of information caused the death of CIA human assets in China.
From MSS’ perspective, he was worth his weight in gold, and the ministry efficiently executed the individuals identified as being CIA sources of clandestine information. Lee provided to them “operational notes from asset meetings, operational meeting locations, operational phone numbers, true names of assets and cover facilities.”
From the CIA optic, he wiped out years of careful source cultivation and caused many a human asset to be executed and a larger number to go to ground and curtail the flow of information to the U.S. intelligence community.
Lee is expected to be sentenced to life in prison, a luxury those he compromised were not availed.
