Special Events

Siu Cheung and author Scott Carmichael

Scott Carmichael, author of True Believer: Inside the Investigation and Capture of Ana Montes, Cuba’s Master Spy, spoke to an enraptured audience on June 13. During a special fundraising event, hosted by WIW and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Carmichael, a Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) agent, talked about his capture of one of the most notorious spies ever to infiltrate the United State’s intelligence agency.

Ana Montes, who was caught in September 2001, just 9 days after 9/11, caused “exceptionally grave danger to national security,” said Carmichael. A highly motivated spy, Montes’ espionage activities not only caused financial damage to the United States (by compromising a special program accessing intelligence collection techniques and information, which cost the United States billions of dollars), her activities resulted in the death of U.S. servicemen, specifically Staff Sergeant Gregory Fronius, a Green Beret who died March 31, 1987. (Proceeds from all book sales will go to Fronius’ family.)

Carmichael’s talk was like a story from the movies or television. He responded to the audience’s enthusiastic questions, explaining, Ana was a professional spy who was recruited by the Cubans even before she was hired by the DIA. She was a spy from the very beginning. A true believer, Ana believed in what she was doing. “She believed she was saving the poor Cubans from the big bad bully—the United States,” said Carmichael.

Carmichael explained that it was actually difficult convincing the FBI to investigate Montes. “Montes was a model employee,” said Carmichael. “She was bright and capable, and she advanced quickly through the ranks. She was even encouraged for the management track. Ana was so well respected—her supervisors loved her.”

“She was one of the more significant spies, I’ve caught,” said Carmichael. Unfortunately, because her arrest occurred just days after 9/11, her story got “lost in the noise” of the anthrax investigation and the Global War on Terrorism.

“I wrote the book because I don’t believe she was the only person to share information with Cuba,” said Carmichael.  He continues to say that although Cuba may not seem like a threat, Cuba will share information with other countries and factions that could be a threat.

While writing his book, Carmichael admitted, “I was worried about the reaction I would get from the counter-intelligence community. People in counter-intelligence just don’t write books. I was afraid of being ostracized by the community and was concerned that by publishing, the community would turn its back on me and refuse to work with me.”

His fears were unfounded. The counter-intelligence community has had positive responses. “They liked that I wrote it. Everyone’s been very positive, and all the people that I’ve talked to liked the book.”

The writing process was surprisingly easy, Carmichael said. “I wrote the book in about 2 weeks.” It just took 2 ½ years for the government to review and reject it, a couple more months to repeal their rejection, and more time to make the necessary changes.

True Believer is published by the Naval Institute Press. It was another surprisingly simple step, Carmichael admits. The only downside, Carmichael explains, is that the Naval Institute Press is a specialty publisher. “Bookstores don’t really want to take a chance. They don’t know if the book will sell, so local bookstores won’t put it on their shelves.”

Despite his success with True Believer, “it hasn’t convinced me to quite my day job,” Carmichael said. He likes what he does too much.