News Story
FBI Tried to Enlist Member of 9/11 Defense Team, Prompting Abrupt Recess in Case
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Did the FBI try to turn a defense team security officer into a secret informant? The question, which was raised by defense lawyers at the first 9/11 hearing of the year Monday, was enough to prompt a judge to abruptly recess the case, the Miami Herald reports. Defense lawyers argued that the…
FBI Plans to Have 52 Million Photos in Its Facial Recognition Database by 2015
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com If all goes as planned, the FBI’s facial recognition database will include 52 million photos by 2015, the Verge reports. That’s an increase of more than three-fold from the 16 million that were in the database in the middle of 2013. Of those, 4.3 million images were for “non-criminal purposes,” according to…
FBI Video Warns American Students of Efforts to Recruit Them as Spies in 28-Minute Video
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The FBI has released a 28-minute video intended to warn American students preparing to study abroad about the dangers of being recruited by foreign intelligence agencies. The video is a dramatization of Glenn Duffie Shriver, an American who accepted money from Chinese intelligence officers while living in China. Shriver was convicted in…
Scott S. Smith Named As New Special Agent in Charge of FBI’s Pittsburgh Office
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The FBI’s Pittsburgh office has a new special agent in charge. On Monday, the FBI named Scott S. Smith, a veteran agent with ties to northern Ohio, as the office’s new leader, replacing Doug Perdue, a two-year veteran of the post who is embarking on an assignment in Washington D.C., the Pittsburgh…
Ex-Homeland Security Supervisor Suspected of Using Government Credit Card to Gamble
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A former Homeland Security supervisor is accused of using his government-issued credit card to gamble at a West Virginia casino. WHAG News reports that Gene Protogiannis, 55, of Virginia, has been indicted on 45 counts of wire fraud for allegedly using his card in 2013 to obtain cash advances at the Hollywood…
Secret Service Agent Who Shot Protecting Presidential Candidate George Wallace Died at 79
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com A former secret service agent who was shot protecting presidential candidate George Wallace in May 1972 has died. Nicholas J. Zarvos was 79. He died Wednesday after a fight with leukemia, the Kansas City Star reports. “That came as such a shock to all of us, because he had always been such…
Attorney Gen. Eric Holder on the Kansas City Area Shooting: “I Was Horrified”
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com The shooting in the Kansas City area on Sunday at Jewish facilities that killed three was a horrifying reminder of the dangers some hate groups pose. Attorney Gen. Eric Holder on Monday morning issued a statement on the matter. “I was horrified to learn of this weekend’s tragic shootings outside Kansas…
FBI Investigating After Agents Fatally Shoot Man in SUV in Busy Shopping Area in Maryland
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com FBI agents fatally opened fire on a man in his SUV in a busy shopping area in Maryland, the Associated Press reports. The Friday shooting occurred near Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club in Owings Mills during rush hour while agent were conducting a drug investigation. The SUV was riddled with bullet holes. The…