Monica Witt

Monica Elfriede Witt (born 8 April 1979) is a former defense contractor and intelligence Technical Sergeant of the United States Air Force who defected to Iran in 2013 and is currently a top FBI fugitive wanted for a 2018 indictment of espionage against the United States. From 2003 and 2008, her work involved counterintelligence assignments that took her to the Middle East. United States assistant attorney general John Demers charged Witt in 2018 and claims she likely provided Iran with the existence of a “highly classified intelligence collection program” and the identity of a US intelligence officer, “thereby risking the life of this individual.”

Born in Texas, Witt enlisted in the US Air Force in 1997 as a linguist and studied the Persian language at the Defense Language Institute before becoming an Airborne Cryptologic Language Analyst. She was then assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations as an enlisted counterintelligence special agent until separating from the Air Force in 2008. She continued working in intelligence as a military contractor until 2010.

After her 2012 conversion to Islam in Iran, Witt became increasingly focused on the religion and the region. Her master's degree capstone presentation lauded them both, and she was soon affiliated with Marzieh Hashemi, a suspected Iranian intelligence operative. With Hashemi's assistance, Witt defected to Iran in 2013 and provided the Islamic republic with assistance and intelligence stemming from her work for and with the US government.

Personal life Monica Elfriede Witt

Iranian espionage

Immediately upon her arrival in Iran, Witt was furnished with "housing and computer equipment, in order to facilitate her work on behalf of the Government of Iran." She promptly told officials the code name and mission of the United States Department of Defense special access program to which she previously had access: classified US intelligence operations against a specific target. From January 2014 through May 2015, Witt used fraudulent Facebook accounts to investigate intelligence personnel and prepare "target packages" for Iran to use and attempt recruitment. Witt also gave Iran the classified true name and counterintelligence activities of a US Intelligence Community operative.