Ruse (book)

Ruse is an autobiographical account written by investigative journalist and FBI counterintelligence operative, Robert Eringer.^[1] Ruse covers the author's covert interactions with CIA defector, Edward Lee Howard in the late years of his life. The primary objective is to convince Howard to travel outside of Russia, to a jurisdiction where he could be arrested and extradited. Eringer's cover as a literary agent also allows him to gain the confidence of the 23 year fugitive, Unicorn Killer (Ira Einhorn).^[2] Frustrated with extradition negotiations, the FBI approved Eringer's plan to keep tabs on Einhorn in case that he would attempt to flee from France during extradition negotiations. Activities described in Ruse also expose Cuban intelligence (DGI) operatives in Washington D.C.,^[3] and preemptively exposed a Cuban plot to disenfranchise Senator Bob Menendez.^[4] When allegations were made against the Senator in 2012, a short passage from Ruse, reported in The Record in 2008,^[5] caused Alex Seitz-Wald (Salon) to Tweet his theory,^[6] and the Daily Caller ultimately published information disproving the allegations in 2013.^[7]

Summary

The author's cover as a book agent served to open communications with fugitives who wished to capitalize on their memoirs. Instead of just publishing these books, Robert Eringer approached the FBI with his plan to "ruse" these fugitives and attempt to bring them to justice. Set between the end of the Cold War and September 11, 2001, Ruse is an account of Eringer's involvement in the efforts of the rendition of Unicorn Killer (Ira Einhorn) and CIA defector Edward Lee Howard. Howard died with operations on hold, due to diplomatic concerns. Einhorn was arrested and is serving a life sentence. The Edward Lee Howard operation produced intelligence of interest in the Aldrich Ames double-agent case. The book includes candid statements from Russian operatives, during the period when Russia's security services were transitioning to the FSK and FSB.^[2]

Senator Menendez conspiracy

In 2014, The Washington Post quoted from Ruse concerning unfounded allegations that Senator Menendez had underpaid a pair of unnamed prostitutes while on vacation in the Dominican Republic.^[6] The Daily Caller had reported in 2013 that the story was fabricated by attorney Melanio Figueroa, who admits that he was paid US$5000 by a man named "Carlos" to find women who would support the allegations.^[7] The passage from Ruse was first picked up by Elizabeth Llorente, of The Record in Bergen County, NJ in early 2008. It appears that both Eringer and Menendez commented for the article at that time.^[5] In 2014, Menendez asked for an investigation into whether the plot originated with Cuban Intelligence.^[8][9][10]

Style

The book is written in three parts, "Hoodwinking Howard", "Conning the Cubans", "Bamboozling Beelzebub" and a short epilogue,"Blackmail, Vodka and Threat to Kill". Ruse is documented with dates and photographs of meetings and correspondence. On April 20, 1994, shortly after the arrest of Aldrich Ames, Eringer entered the country to meet with CIA defector Edward Lee Howard under conditions that Russia would consider espionage and with the knowledge that the FBI would disavow any connection to himself, or the operation.^{[11]:page 52}

Hoodwinking Howard 

Introductory chapters begin with the death of the fugitive CIA agent, Edward Lee Howard and how he slipped surveillance. After the initial background on Edward Lee Howard, Eringer establishes his credentials as an investigative journalist, and how a private citizen became a counterintelligence operative with the FBI. The book then largely follows a chronological order of the events.

Planning for the rendition of Howard required that he be caught traveling, of his own free will, within a jurisdiction that would expedite to the United States.^[4] Howard was interested in retiring in Lake Baikal in southern Siberia and Havana, Cuba. The operation was called-off, in fear of damaging relations with Russia. Edward Lee Howard's memior, Safe House (1995) ISBN 9781882605156, was actually published by National Press Books;^[12] however, an additional title, A Spies Guide to Europe,^{[11]:page 61} the book-ruse employed to encourage Howard to travel was never written.

In a related issue, it was disclosed to Eringer by Igor Prelin that Oleg Kalugin blew the cover of the convicted CIA double-agent Aldrich Ames.^{[11]:page 160}

Conning the Cubans 

Eringer's trip to Cuba supposedly on behalf of Howard instilled trust with the Cubans who ran intelligence operations in Washington D.C., Eringer's interest in publishing Fidel Castro's memoirs helped ensure them that Eringer was the untrustworthy kind of person they could trust. The Cubans also expressed a desire have Eringer spy for them to attempt to hobble the political careers of proponents of sanctions against Cuba, Senator Robert Menéndez (NJ), Representative Ileana Ros(FL) and Mario Díaz-Balart (FL).^{[4][11]:page 146}

Bamboozling Beelzebub

This section is about Eringer's personal interaction preceding the successful extradition of Ira Einhorn (the Unicorn Killer) from France on July 20, 2001. Eringer was instrumental in keeping Einhorn frozen in place while extradition negotiations wound through the courts, with missed payment and publications dates for a book he never intended to publish. The French court finally ruled against Einhorn and Eringer's FBI handlers called from the tarmac at Charles De Gaulle Airport, letting Eringer know that Einhorn was handcuffed and on a plane to the United States.^{[11]:page 200}

Blackmail, Vodka and Threat to Kill 

This section is about Eringer's insight since his association with Clair George (the former Deputy Director of Operations of the CIA) was published in 2001 and Vladimir Putin's rise to power. Eringer does not discount the probability that Howard may been a victim of a house cleaning operation, noting high-profile deaths of Russian journalists and the exile of former politicians.^{[11]:page 211}

Reviews

"The book falls squarely in the “trust me” category despite the inclusion of some 10-year-old photographs that tend to substantiate meetings with Howard and former KGB chairman, Vladimir Kryuchkov." — Hayden B. Peake, curator of the CIA Historical Intelligence Collection^[2]

"Ruse fully chronicles Eringer’s association with Howard, as well as detailing another FBI operation in which he captured wanted murderer Ira Einhorn, who oddly enough also claims to be the founder of Earth Day. The book is fast-paced, absorbing, and a must-read for anyone with an interest in espionage." — Elena Gray-Blanc, "Real-Life Spy Puts 007 to Shame", Santa Barbara Independent^[3]

Further reading

• "A Counterintelligence Cold Case File: The Fourth Mole", by Mike Mattson, 2009^[13]
• "The Intelligence Officer’s Bookshelf", by Hayden B. Peake, September 2008^[2]
• Lockdown 2010: "Manufactured Consent and Cyberwar", by Bill Blunden, Conference proceedings, University of Wisconsin -‐ Madison^[14]

References

External links

• Official website