Original reporting and commentary about polygraphs, voice stress analyzers, and other purported "lie detectors."
Reuters correspondent James Vicini reports. Excerpt: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – As many as seven FBI employees with access to highly classified information face more investigation after taking polygraph tests given to tighten security following the discovery of a Russian spy within the FBI, officials said on Wednesday. “We have identified up to 700 persons who were …
Associated Press writer Ted Bridis reports. Excerpt: WASHINGTON – FBI Director Robert Mueller on Wednesday promised broader use of lie detectors and a closer check of employee financial records to help deter or catch spies within America’s elite law enforcement agency. Mueller acknowledged delicate issues of privacy and trust. But he said FBI employees must …
Laura Sullivan of the Baltimore Sun reports in an article titled, “FBI sets its bar high for aspiring agents.” Excerpt: Just to be considered, applicants must be U.S. citizens between ages 26 and 36, with at least three years of full-time work and a four–year college degree. Those who qualify undergo a series of written …
The Associated Press reports on counterespionage measures adopted by the FBI in the wake of the Hanssen affair, including a discussion of the Bureau’s counterintelligence-scope polygraph program. Excerpt: Former CIA and FBI Director William Webster is wrapping up a massive review of the FBI’s internal security in the aftermath of the Robert Hanssen spy case. …
Knight-Ridder Washington correspondent Tim Johnson reports in an article published in the Miami Herald on the guilty plea of DIA analyst Ana Belen Montes, who was recruited by Cuban intelligence even before she began her DIA career. Excerpt: WASHINGTON – A senior U.S. intelligence analyst, Ana Belen Montes, admitted in federal court on Tuesday that …
Associated Press writer Jesse J. Holland reports in an article published in the Washington Post under the title, “Senators Call for FBI Oversight Legislation.” Excerpt: WASHINGTON – Two senators called for sweeping changes in the FBI Thursday, including mandated lie detector tests of people working with sensitive information, letting Justice Department investigators independently look at …
In an article titled “Officials look for link in anthrax samples from labs,” the Associated Press reports that the FBI has used polygraph interrogations in its investigation of last year’s anthrax letter attacks. Excerpt: The FBI believes the anthrax letters were the work of a single scientist, and some of the scientists fit aspects of …
Chicago Tribune national correspondent Evan Osnos reports on the pre-trial testimony of Osama Awadallah, who faces federal perjury charges. Excerpt: Awadallah, a permanent U.S. resident whose trial is set to begin May 20, testified that the government’s intimidation began with his earliest conversations with the FBI on Sept. 20, when, he said, 15 to 20 …
William R. Gorta reports for the New York Post. Excerpt: February 19, 2002 — A Jordanian charged with lying to a grand jury recited to a federal judge a list of alleged law-enforcement abuses at his pre-trial evidence-suppression hearing yesterday. Osama Awadallah, 21, said he was physically abused by jail guards, denied access to a …
Associated Press correspondent Larry Neumeister reports on Osama Awadallah’s courtroom testimony. Excerpt: NEW YORK (AP) – A Jordanian student testified Monday that FBI agents accused him of being one of the Sept. 11 terrorists after saying he failed a lie detector test. Osama Awadallah, 21, said agents told him he would be freed but after …