CIA involved in sex-crimes scandal: CNN
3 Min Read
Courts in northern Virginia and Washington DC have been quietly addressing cases of sexual assault at the CIA for over a year, revealing a deep-rooted cultural issue within the agency.
-
File photo shows the seal of the Central Intelligence Agency at CIA headquarters in Langley, Va on April 13, 2016. (AP)
Nearly a third of CIA employees have reported experiencing inappropriate sexual conduct in the workplace at least once during their careers, according to the agency's first internal survey, shared exclusively with CNN.
The outlet indicated that the CIA is experiencing “its own #MeToo moment,” referencing the public movement against sexual harassment in the entertainment industry that started in 2017 and led to the conviction and imprisonment of film mogul Harvey Weinstein.
”We are not where we need to be, and I don’t need a survey to tell me that,” CIA Chief Operating Officer Maura Burns, not related to Director William Burns, told CNN.
Only a quarter of the agency's employees took part in the voluntary survey. Among those who did, 28% reported experiencing "at least one instance of a sexually hostile work environment" during their time at the CIA, while 9% encountered such an instance in the past year alone.
CNN has observed that this rate is “just slightly higher than the national average” but lower than the figures reported by the US military. The outlet highlighted two significant cases that indicate a “deep-rooted cultural problem” within the agency based in Langley, Virginia.
Case 1: Officer infects at least five women
One officer, who was stationed in Europe until recently, is accused of knowingly infecting at least five women with an STD. He remains employed at the agency, currently working at headquarters while an internal investigation is ongoing.
Case 2: Female contractor accuses senior CIA officer of sexual assault
A female contractor has also accused a senior CIA officer of coercing her into sexual relations, claiming he visited her home with a firearm and presented her with a knife as a “threat” while on CIA premises, according to a federal lawsuit. Two sources informed CNN that the officer in question has since been fired.
CIA officer charged with sexual abuse
Last month, a federal court in Virginia sentenced a former CIA officer to 30 years in prison for charges including sexual abuse, abusive sexual contact, coercion and enticement, and the transportation of obscene material.
Brian Jeffrey Raymond pleaded guilty to raping four women, sexually abusing six more, and capturing explicit photographs of 28 female victims during his more than 10 years stationed in various Latin American countries.
To address the issue within the agency, Maura Burns has reportedly established a Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Office (SHARP).
What is SHARP?
During a town hall on September 25, Burns and SHARP director Dr. Taleta Jackson provided guidance to officers on how to report incidents of sexual harassment while safeguarding their cover and classified information.
”Go call the police. The cover issue, we will fix, don’t worry about that,” Burns told the town hall, CNN reported.
According to a complaint filed by one alleged victim in June, a CIA employee claimed she was instructed by management to lie to the police about both her and her attacker’s affiliation with the agency, as well as about the alleged assault occurring on agency premises.
The employee, identified as ‘Danielle Sparks,’ stated that if she did not comply, she would be accused of mishandling classified information.
