New in SpyWeek: The Perils of Espionage in Iran and Here, Plus More FBI Purges

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Lee’s dream of Russian citizenship was aborted by an undercover agent..

Wannabe Spy:  A U.S. Army enlisted man was caught in an act of espionage by the FBI, with the help of Army counterintelligence, in El Paso, Texas, the Justice Department reported. Specialist Taylor Adam Lee, 22, was arrested Wednesday after he delivered classified military information on U.S. tank vulnerabilities to someone he believed to be a Russian intelligence officer. He was seeking Russian citizenship, news accounts said, based on the DoJ’s announcement. He is accused of transmitting “export-controlled technical data on the M1A2 Abrams tank online and offer[ing] assistance to the Russian Federation,” during which he allegedly stated, “the USA is not happy with me for trying to expose their weaknesses. At this point I’d even volunteer to assist the Russian federation when I’m there in any way.”

Hanged for Spying: An Iranian nuclear scientist accused of working for Mossad was hanged Wednesday in Tehran. Rouzbeh Vadi was convicted of spying for Israel and passing on information about a nuclear scientist killed in Israel's June airstrikes on the Islamic Republic, according to Reuters, quoting the Ministry of Justice. Vadi allegedly passed along secrets to a Mossad agent in Vienna, he said in a televised confession.