Ex-CIA analyst indicted for spying for South Korea

A former analyst with the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Sue Mi Terry, has been indicted by a New York grand jury on charges of acting as a spy for the South Korean government in exchange for cash, luxury items, and expensive meals.

Terry, who also served as a senior official at the White House National Security Council, faces two counts of failing to register as a foreign agent and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Federal officials allege that Terry, a noted US expert on North Korea, operated as an agent for South Korea for over a decade without registering with American authorities, as per court documents revealed on Tuesday in the Southern District of New York.

Currently a senior fellow on Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Terry has been placed on unpaid leave, and her biography has been removed from the CFR website. Terry, 54, denies the charges, with her attorney, Lee Wolosky, labeling the allegations as “unfounded.” Wolosky contends that the charges misrepresent Terry’s scholarly and independent work, emphasizing that she was a vocal critic of the South Korean government during the periods mentioned in the indictment.

Born in South Korea and having moved to the US at age 12, Terry earned her doctorate from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in 2001. She then served as a senior analyst for the CIA from 2001 to 2008, later holding various federal government positions, including Director for Korea, Japan, and Oceanic Affairs at the National Security Council under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Prosecutors allege that Terry began her espionage activities for the South Korean government in 2013, five years after leaving the CIA and the National Security Council. The 31-page indictment details that Terry admitted to FBI agents during a voluntary interview in 2023 that she was a “source” for South Korea’s National Intelligence Service. According to the indictment, the South Korean government provided Terry with lavish gifts, including a $2,845 Dolce & Gabbana coat, a $3,450 Louis Vuitton handbag, and upscale restaurant meals. Additionally, she allegedly received $37,000, which was funneled into a gift fund at the think tank where she worked to obscure the source of the funds.

This indictment comes on the heels of Democratic Senator Robert Menendez’s conviction for accepting luxury items from foreign governments in exchange for political favors.