The FBI has put a $200,000 price on the head of a former Air Force counterintelligence specialist, Monica Witt, who knows the real names of undercover American agents and is now believed to be working with Iran.
Monica Witt, 47, defected to Iran more than a decade ago, but officials say she took with her highly classified information that could compromise U.S. operations and endanger lives.
The new reward, announced this week, May 14, shows growing concern inside the intelligence community that she continues to help Tehran target her former colleagues.
Witt served in the Air Force from 1997 to 2008 as an intelligence specialist and counterintelligence agent. She learned Farsi and took part in classified missions in the Middle East.
Access to Sensitive Secrets
Later, as a government contractor until 2010, she had access to some of the country’s most sensitive secrets, including the true identities of undercover personnel working overseas.
That kind of knowledge is gold for any adversary. According to the FBI, Witt gave Iran exactly that.
She was indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington on espionage charges in February 2019.
Prosecutors say she gave national defense information to the Iranian government and helped Iranian operatives research ways to identify and target Americans with whom she had worked.
“Witt allegedly betrayed her oath to the Constitution,” Daniel Wierzbicki, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Counterintelligence and Cyber Division, said in a statement.
He added that she “likely continues to support their nefarious activities.”
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The reward comes amid U.S.-Iran tensions that remain high, with talks on a permanent nuclear deal stuck and both sides watching each other warily.
Intelligence officials worry that someone with Witt’s background and access could do real damage right now.
Witt, who grew up in Texas, traveled to Iran for conferences after leaving the military and contracting world, which U.S. officials described as anti-American propaganda events.
In 2013, she defected and converted to Islam, took on new names, including Fatemah Zahra, and has been living under Iranian protection ever since.
The Justice Department says her actions have directly benefited the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which the U.S. designated a terrorist organization in 2019.
By providing names and operational details, she put American spies and their families at risk, officials allege.
Personal betrayal is a big crime within any security agency, as counterintelligence work is built on trust.
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When someone inside that world switches sides and brings names with them, the damage can last for years.
Sources familiar with the case say the agency has quietly pursued leads on Witt for years without success.
The public reward is now an attempt to elicit new information from anyone who might have seen her or heard details about her life in Iran.
The $200,000 signals that the government considers her a priority target. The FBI is asking for tips on her whereabouts or any fresh intelligence about what she is doing inside Iran. Officials believe she may still be actively assisting Iranian intelligence.
Monica Witt’s Profile Concerns U.S. Officials
Witt is not the first American to defect, but her profile worries authorities more than most.
Her training, language abilities, and deep understanding of American ways of life make her highly valuable to Iran. She knows how American agents work because she used to be one of them.
So far, there is no public indication that Witt has been charged with additional crimes since the 2019 indictment.
The FBI says anyone with information should contact them or submit tips through official channels. The reward applies to details leading to her arrest and conviction.
The Monica Witt case is a painful reminder that the U.S. intelligence community has never solved its insider threat problem.
From Edward Snowden’s massive NSA leaks to Reality Winner’s breach and others in between, a handful of people with trusted access keep delivering some of the worst damage America’s spy agencies have ever seen.
