The FBI has announced a substantial reward as it seeks information that could help locate Monica Witt, a former US Air Force special agent and counterintelligence specialist.
Authorities allege Witt passed classified details tied to a Defense Department program to the Iranian government.
According to the US Justice Department, Witt entered the US Air Force in 1997 and separated in 2008. She later worked as a Defense Department contractor until 2010.
During those years, prosecutors say her positions granted her access to sensitive material, including the real identities of undercover personnel in the US Intelligence Community, along with other classified information.
The FBI said of Witt: “Her military service and contracting employment provided her access to SECRET and TOP SECRET information relating to foreign intelligence and counterintelligence, including the true names of US Intelligence Community undercover personnel.”
The FBI says Witt left for Iran in 2013, a move it claims has “benefitted the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)”, Iran’s powerful military organisation often described as central to projecting Tehran’s influence abroad.
Before that, prosecutors allege she travelled to Iran in 2012 for a conference that criticised “American moral standards” and promoted anti-American messaging.
Investigators also claim that when she returned to Iran in 2013, Witt — who speaks Farsi — received housing and computer equipment from Iranian officials.
Witt was charged in the US in 2019 with espionage but has not been taken into custody. The FBI is now offering a $200,000 reward for information that leads to her arrest and prosecution.
Daniel Wierzbicki, special agent in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterintelligence and Cyber Division, said in a news release: “Monica Witt allegedly betrayed her oath to the Constitution more than a decade ago by defecting to Iran and providing the Iranian regime National Defense Information and likely continues to support their nefarious activities.”
“The FBI has not forgotten and believes that during this critical moment in Iran’s history, there is someone who knows something about her whereabouts,” Wierzbicki’s statement went on.
“The FBI wants to hear from you so you can help us apprehend Witt and bring her to justice.”
The 47-year-old, born in El Paso, Texas, is described as approximately 5ft 6 and about 120 pounds, with brown hair.
An FBI wanted poster warns she may be an international flight risk. She is also known to have used the aliases Fatemah Zahra and Narges Witt.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI. Tips can also be provided through a local FBI office, the nearest American Embassy or Consulate, or by submitting information at tips.fbi.gov.