By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
A Massachusetts man has copted a plea to trying to spy for Israel.
Elliot Doxer, 43, an employee of a high-tech company, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Boston federal court to foreign economic espionage for providing trade secrets over an 18-month period to an undercover FBI agent posing as an Israeli intelligence officer.
The plea agreement said that on June 22, 2006, Doxer sent an email to the Israeli consulate in Boston saying he worked for the finance department of Akamai Technologies, Inc., and was willing to provide any information that might help Israel.
Authorities said Doxer said DOXER said his chief desire “was to help our homeland and our war against our enemies.” He also asked to be paid for the risks he was taking.
In September 2007, an FBI agent posing as an undercover Israeli intelligence officer spoke to Doxer and established a “dead drop” where the agent and Doxer could exchange written communications.
From October 2007 through March 2009, Doxer visited the dead drop at least 62 times to leave information, retrieve communications, and check for new communications.
Included in the trade secret information that Doxer provided the undercover agent were an extensive list of Akamai’s customers; contracts between the company and various customers revealing contact, services, pricing, and termination date information; and a comprehensive list of the company’s employees that revealed their positions and full contact information.
In a press release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston said:
“We acknowledge the Government of Israel for their cooperation in this investigation, and underscore that the Information does not allege that the government of Israel or anyone acting on its behalf committed any offense under U.S. laws in this case. We would also like to acknowledge and thank Akamai Technologies, Inc., for its assistance throughout all stages of the investigation and prosecution.”
Doxer was initially arrested on on Oct. 6, 2010.
