About Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik
Lived 1939 – 1977 (aged 37). Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik was a Russian diplomat.
Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik (; November 11, 1939 – June 22, 1977) was a Soviet diplomat who, while stationed in Bogotá, was contacted by the Colombian Administrative Department of Security and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to spy on the Soviet Union, operating under the code name TRIGON.
He initially showed little promise and claimed he knew only of Colombian political affairs. He was later transferred to the Soviet Foreign Ministry in Moscow. In this new position, he was able to photograph a great deal of secret diplomatic cables, many of which were sent daily to the White House.
Ogorodnik eventually requested a suicide pill to be used in the event that he was caught. His chief CIA handler in Bogotá, KGB double agent Aldrich Ames, was able to supply him with one. However, Ogorodnik threw away the first pen containing the L-pill (lethal pill) and asked for the CIA to provide him with another pen. After much discussion in the CIA headquarters regarding this request, it was eventually approved and his Moscow handler, Martha Peterson, delivered the pen through a dead drop.
Ogorodnik's espionage activity was revealed to the KGB by Karl Koecher, a Czechoslovak double-agent working as a translator for the CIA, and he was arrested in 1977. During his interrogation, Ogorodnik offered to write a full confession and asked for his pen. When the interrogator handed him the pen with the hidden cyanide pill in the cap, Ogorodnik bit on it and died soon after. He was said to have died before he hit the floor. who was born from his romance in Bogotá with a Spanish woman, Pilar Suárez Barcala, who helped the CIA in Ogorodnik's recruitment.
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik?
Soviet spy and diplomat
When was Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik born?
Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik was born on 11 November 1939 in Sevastopol.
When did Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik die?
Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik died on 21 June 1977 in Moscow.
What was Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik's occupation?
Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik was a diplomat.
What nationality was Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik?
Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik was Russian.
Sources & further reading
· Wikipedia: Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik
· DBpedia: Aleksandr Ogorodnik
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik. https://biography.guide/aleksandr-dmitrievich-ogorodnik/
MLA: "Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/aleksandr-dmitrievich-ogorodnik/.
Chicago: "Aleksandr Dmitrievich Ogorodnik." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/aleksandr-dmitrievich-ogorodnik/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-22 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Portrait: Wikimedia Commons · author & licence
Page generated 2026-09-27 05:03 UTC