the U.S.
Currently, there is a movement for mandatory elec- tronic recording of all custodial interrogations in the United States.[22] “Electronic recording” describes the process of recording interrogations from start to finish. This is in contrast to a “taped” or “recorded confes- sion,” which typically only includes the final statement of the suspect. “Taped interrogation” is the traditional term for this process; however, as analog is becoming less and less common, statutes and scholars are refer- ring to the process as “electronically recording” inter- views or interrogations. Alaska,[23]Illinois,[24]Maine,[25] Minnesota,[23]and Wisconsin[26]are the only states to re- quire taped interrogation. New Jersey’s taping require- ment started on January 1, 2006.[23][27] Massachusetts allows jury instructions that state that the courts pre- fer taped interrogations.[28] Commander Neil Nelson of the St. Paul Police Department, an expert in taped interrogation,[29] has described taped interrogation in Minnesota as the “best thing ever rammed down our throats”.[30]
22.5 See also
• Covert interrogation
• Interrogation of Saddam Hussein
• Third degree (interrogation)
• Water cure (torture)
22.6 References
[1] J. D. Obenberger (October 1998). “Police Deception: The Law and the Skin Trade in the Windy City”. [2] Perri, Frank S.; Lichtenwald, Terrance G. (2008).
“The Arrogant Chameleons: Exposing Fraud Detec- tion Homicide” (PDF). Forensic Examiner. All-about- psychology.com. pp. 26–33.
124 CHAPTER 22. INTERROGATION
[3] Perri, Frank S.; Lichtenwald, Terrance G. (2010). “The Last Frontier: Myths & The Female Psychopathic Killer” (PDF). Forensic Examiner. All-about-forensic- psychology.com. pp. 19:2, 50–67.
[4] Kassin, Saul; Fong, Christina (1999). "'I'm Innocent!': Effects of Training on Judgments of Truth and Deception in the Interrogation room”. Law and Human Behavior 23 (5): 499–516.doi:10.1023/a:1022330011811.
[5] McCoy, Alfred (2007). A Question of Torture: CIA Inter-
rogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror. Henry
Holt & Co. pp. 16–17.ISBN 978-0-8050-8248-7. [6] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 16) [7] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 17) [8] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 11; 59) [9] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 59)
[10] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, pp. 18; 60–107) [11] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 11)
[12] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, pp. 99, 109–110) [13] Froomkin, Dan (7 November 2005).“Cheney’s Dark Side
is Showing”. Washington Post. Retrieved 29 March 2012. [14] “Transcript of interview with CIA director Panetta”. MSNBC. 2011-05-03. Retrieved 2011-08-21. Enhanced interrogation has always been a kind of handy euphemism (for torture)
[15] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, p. 152)
[16] (McCoy, a Question of Torture 2007, pp. 108, 117, 120– 123, 143–144)
[17] “Report by the Senate Armed Services Committee on De- tainee Treatment”. Documents.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2014-04-23.
[18] Knowlton, Brian (April 21, 2009). “Report Gives New Detail on Approval of Brutal Techniques”. New York Times. (report linked to article)
[19] Will, George(1/11/2013). “Facing up to what we did in interrogations”. Washington Post. Retrieved 12 January 2013. Check date values in: |date= (help)
[20] “Obama: U.S. will not torture - politics - White House | NBC News”. MSNBC. 2009-01-09. Retrieved 2014-04- 23.
[21] http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/us/politics/ 16holdercnd.html
[22] New Jersey Courts. Judiciary.state.nj.us. Retrieved on 2011-03-04.
[23] Electronic Recording of Interrogations, Center for Policy Alternatives
[24] text of the new Illinois law (SB15) requiring electronic recording of custodial interrogations in murder case (The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Act)at theWayback Machine(archived September 26, 2007)
[25] 223A: Recording of Interviews of Suspects in Serious Crimes
[26] Wisconsin Supreme Court rules that all custodial interro- gations of juveniles must be recorded. (In the Interest of Jerrell C.J.) (05-3-25).at theWayback Machine(archived August 20, 2010) Texas Juvenile Probation Commission. [27] New Rule 3:17 – Electronic Recordation. Judi-
ciary.state.nj.us. Retrieved on 2011-03-04.
[28] See Commonwealth v. DiGiambattista, 813 N.E.2d 516, 533–34 (Mass. 2004).
[29] Neil Nelson & Associates Home Page. Neilnelson.com. Retrieved on 2011-03-04.
[30] Wagner, Dennis (December 6, 2005).“FBI’s policy draw- ing fire”. The Arizona Republic. Retrieved October 16, 2013.
22.7 External links
• Interrogation techniquesfrom GlobalSecurity.org
• Limits to Interrogation – The Man In The Snow White Cell, howNguyen Tairesisted interrogation and torture for years.
• 'In the Box': Go Inside the Interrogation Room (See what tactics police use to extract confessions from suspects, solve crimes) from ABCNews.go.com
Chapter 23
Non-official cover
Inespionage, agents under non-official cover (NOC) are operatives who assumecovertroles in organizations with- out ties to the government for which they work. Such agents or operatives are typically abbreviated in espi- onage lingo as a NOC (pronounced “knock”).[1] These agents are also known as “illegals”.[2]Non-official cover is contrasted withofficial cover, where an agent assumes a position at an otherwise benign department of their gov- ernment, such as thediplomatic service. This provides the agent with officialdiplomatic immunity, thus protect- ing them from the steep punishments normally meted out to captured spies. Upon discovery of an official cover agent’s secret hostile role, the host nation often declares the agentpersona non grataand orders them to leave the country.
Agents under non-official cover do not have this “safety net”, and if captured or charged they are subject to se- vere criminal punishments, up to and includingexecution. Agents under non-official cover are also usually trained to deny any connection with their government, thus preserv- ingplausible deniability, but also denying them any hope of diplomatic legal assistance or official acknowledgment of their service. Sometimes, entirefront companies or strawmanentities are established in order to provide false identities for agents.
23.1 History
An agent sent to spy on a foreign country might, for in- stance, work as a businessperson, a worker for a non- profit organization (such as a humanitarian group), or an academic. For example, theCIA's Ishmael Jonesspent nearly two decades as a NOC.[3]
Many of the agents memorialized without names or dates of service on the CIA Memorial Wall are assumed to have been killed or executed in a foreign country while serving as NOC agents. In nations with established and well-developed spy agencies, the majority of captured non-native NOC agents have, however, historically been repatriated throughprisoner exchangesfor other captured NOCs as a form ofgentlemen’s agreement.
Some countries have regulations regarding the use of non-
official cover: the CIA, for example, has at times been prohibited from disguising agents as members of certain aid organizations, or as members of theclergy.
The degree of sophistication put into non-official cover stories varies considerably. Sometimes, an agent will sim- ply be appointed to a position in a well-established com- pany which can provide the appropriate opportunities. Other times, entire front companiescan be established in order to provide false identities for agents.
Examples includeAir America, used by the CIA during the Vietnam War, andBrewster Jennings & Associates, used by the CIA inWMDinvestigations and made public as a result of thePlame affair.
The journalistUdo Ulfkottemade a statement, referring to his past career at the German newspaperFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, that he worked as a non-official cover for theCentral Intelligence Agency.[4]
23.2 Examples
Nicholas Anderson is a real NOC who wrote an ac- count of his service in a fictionalized autobiography (as per British law). The original non-fiction manuscript breached the UKOfficial Secrets Act in 2000 and ap- peared in a 100 banned books list published in 2003. Michael Ross, a former Mossad officer, operated as a Mossad NOC or “combatant” as described in his memoir,
The Volunteer: The Incredible True Story of an Israeli Spy on the Trail of International Terrorists, Skyhorse Publish-
ing, September 2007,ISBN 978-1-60239-132-1. Chuck Barrismade a satirical claim to have been a NOC with 33 kills. His story was recounted in the book and movieConfessions of a Dangerous Mind.
Fictional examples are featured in the booksConfessions of a Dangerous Mind,Debt of Honor,Ted Bell's Pirate, andThe Eleventh Commandment; in the moviesMission: Impossible,Spy Game,The Bourne Identity,Safe House, andThe Recruit; and the TV showsThe Americans,Burn Notice,SpooksandCovert Affairs.
126 CHAPTER 23. NON-OFFICIAL COVER
23.3 References
[1] Shannon, Elaine (February 20, 1995).“Spies for the New Disorder”. Time. Time, Inc. Retrieved 2008-02-19. [2] Clandestine HUMINT operational techniques
[3] John Weisman (September 7, 2010). “Tripping Over CIA’s Bureaucratic Hurdles”. Washington Times. Re- trieved 2010-03-19.
[4] “Dr Udo Ulfkotte, journalist and author, on RT”. Septem- ber 29, 2014.
23.4 See also
• Illegals Program • Secret identity23.5 External links
• nicholasanderson.infoChapter 24
Numbers station
A numbers station is a type ofshortwaveradio station characterized by unusual broadcasts, reading out lists of numbers or incomprehensible morse code messages.[1] The voices are often created byspeech synthesisand are transmitted in a wide variety of languages. The voices are usually female, although sometimes men’s or children’s voices are used. Some voices are synthesized and created by machines; however, some stations used to have live readers.[2] Many numbers stations went off the air due to the end of the Cold War in 1989, but many still oper- ate and some have even continued operations but changed schedules and operators.
The first known use of numbers stations was during World War I, and the first possible listener was Anton Habs- burg of Austria.[3] The numbers were most likely sent through the use of Morse code. It is widely assumed that these broadcasts transmit covert messages tospies. The Czech Ministry of Interiorand theSwedish Security Ser- vicehave both acknowledged the use of numbers stations byCzechoslovakiafor espionage,[4][5][6]with declassified documents proving the same. With a few exceptions,[7] noQSLresponses have been received from numbers sta- tions byshortwave listenerswho sent reception reports to said stations, which is the expected behavior of a non- clandestine station.[8]
The best known of the numbers stations was the "Lincolnshire Poacher", which is thought to have been run by the BritishSecret Intelligence Service.[9]
In 2001, the United States tried theCuban Fiveon the charge of spying for Cuba. That group had received and decoded messages that had been broadcast from Cuban numbers stations.[10]Also in 2001,Ana Belen Montes, a senior USDefense Intelligence Agencyanalyst, was ar- rested and charged with espionage. The federal pros- ecutors alleged that Montes was able to communicate with the CubanIntelligence Directoratethrough encoded messages, with instructions being received through “en- crypted shortwave transmissions from Cuba”. In 2006, Carlos Alvarez and his wife, Elsa, were arrested and charged with espionage. The U.S. District Court Florida stated that “defendants would receive assignments via shortwave radio transmissions”.
In June 2003, the United States similarly chargedWalter
Kendall Myerswith conspiracy to spy for Cuba and re- ceiving and decoding messages broadcast from a numbers station operated by the Cuban Intelligence Directorate to further that conspiracy.[11][12]
It has been reported that the United States used numbers stations to communicate encoded information to persons in other countries.[10]There are also claims thatState De- partmentoperated stations, such as KKN50 and KKN44, used to broadcast similar “numbers” messages or related traffic.[13][14]
24.1 Suspected origins and use
According to the notes ofThe Conet Project,[15][16]which has compiled recordings of these transmissions, numbers stations have been reported sinceWorld War I. If accu- rate, this would count numbers stations among the earliest radio broadcasts.
It has long been speculated, and was argued in court in one case, that these stations operate as a simple and fool- proof method for government agencies to communicate withspiesworking undercover.[17]According to this the- ory, the messages are encrypted with aone-time pad, to avoid any risk of decryption by the enemy. As evidence, numbers stations have changed details of their broadcasts or produced special, nonscheduled broadcasts coincident with extraordinary political events, such as the August Coupof 1991 in the Soviet Union.[18]
Numbers stations are also acknowledged for espionage purposes in Robert Wallace andH. Keith Melton's Spy-
craft:[19]
The one-way voice link (OWVL) de- scribed a covert communications system that transmitted messages to an agent’s unmodi- fied shortwave radio using the high-frequency shortwave bands between 3 and 30 MHz at a predetermined time, date, and frequency con- tained in their communications plan. The transmissions were contained in a series of re- peated random number sequences and could only be deciphered using the agent’s one-time
128 CHAPTER 24. NUMBERS STATION
pad. If proper tradecraft was practiced and in- structions were precisely followed, an OWVL transmission was considered unbreakable. [...] As long as the agent’s cover could justify pos- sessing a shortwave radio and he was not under technical surveillance, high-frequency OWVL was a secure and preferred system for the CIA during the Cold War.
Others speculate that some of these stations may be re- lated toillegal drug smugglingoperations.[20]Unlike gov- ernment stations, smugglers’ stations would need to be lower powered and irregularly operated, to avoid loca- tion by triangulateddirection finding. However, numbers stations have transmitted with impunity for decades, so they are generally presumed to be operated or sponsored by governments. Additionally, numbers station trans- missions in the international shortwave bands typically transmit at high power levels that might be unavailable to ranches, farms, or plantations in isolated drug-growing regions.
High frequency radio signals transmitted at relatively low power can travel around the world under ideal propagationconditions, which are affected by local RF noiselevels, weather, season, andsunspots, and can then be received with a properly tuned antenna of adequate size, and a good receiver. However, spies often have to work only with available hand-held receivers, some- times under difficult local conditions, and in all seasons and sunspot cycles.[10]Only very large transmitters, per- haps up to 500,000 watts, are guaranteed to get through to nearly any basement-dwelling spy, nearly any place on earth, nearly all of the time. Some governments may not need a numbers station with global coverage if they only send spies to nearby countries.
A 1998 article in The Daily Telegraph quoted a spokesperson for the Department of Trade and Indus- try (the government department that, at that time, reg- ulated radio broadcasting in theUnited Kingdom) as say- ing, “These [numbers stations] are what you suppose they are. People shouldn't be mystified by them. They are not for, shall we say, public consumption.”[21]
On some stations, tones can be heard in the background. In such cases, the voice may simply be an aid to tuning to the correct frequency, with the actual coded message being sent bymodulatingthe tones, using a technology such asburst transmission.
The use of numbers stations as a method of espionage is discussed in Spycraft:[22]
The only item Penkovskyused that could properly be called advanced tradecraft was his 'agent-receive' communications through a one-way voice-link. These encoded messages, known as OWVL, were broadcast over short- wave frequencies at predetermined times from
a CIA-operated transmitter in Western Eu- rope. Penkovsky listened to these messages on a Panasonic radio—strings of numbers read in a dispassionate voice—and then decoded them using a one-time pad.
24.1.1 Identifying and locating
Numbers stations are often given nicknames by enthu- siasts, often reflecting some distinctive element of the station such as their interval signal. For example, the "Lincolnshire Poacher", formerly one of the best known numbers stations (generally thought to be run bySIS, as its transmissions have been traced to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus), played the first two bars of thefolk song"The Lincolnshire Poacher" before each string of numbers.[23] The “Atención” station was thought to be fromCuba, as a supposed error allowedRadio Havana Cubato be carried on the frequency.[24]
Several articles in the radio magazinePopular Communi- cationspublished in the 1980s and early 1990s described hobbyists using portable radio direction-finding equip- ment to locate numbers stations in Florida and in the Warrenton, Virginia, areas of the United States. From the outside, they observed the station’s antenna inside a military facility, theWarrenton Training Center. The sta- tion hunter speculated that the antenna’s transmitter at the facility was connected by a telephone wire pair to a source of spoken numbers in theWashington, D.C., area. The author said theFederal Communications Commis- sionwould not comment on public inquiries about Amer- ican territory numbers stations.
According to an internal Cold War era report of the Pol- ish Ministry of Interior, numbers stations DCF37 (3370 kHz) and DFD21 (4010 kHz) transmitted from West Germany since the early 1950s.[25]