Aldrich Ames, the notorious CIA turncoat responsible for one of the most devastating intelligence breaches in US history, has died at the age of 84 in a Maryland prison.
His death on Monday was confirmed by a spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons.
Ames confessed to receiving $2.5 million (£1.85m) from Moscow between 1985 and his 1994 arrest, in exchange for US secrets.
His treachery involved revealing the identities of ten Russian officials and one East European agent working for the United States or Great Britain.
These betrayals are widely attributed to the executions of Western agents operating behind the Iron Curtain and inflicted a significant blow to the CIA.
He pleaded guilty without a trial to espionage and tax evasion and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Prosecutors said he deprived the United States of valuable intelligence material for years.
He professed “profound shame and guilt” for “this betrayal of trust, done for the basest motives,” money to pay debts. But he downplayed the damage he caused, telling the court he did not believe he had “noticeably damaged” the United States or “noticeably aided” Moscow.
"These spy wars are a sideshow which have had no real impact on our significant security interests over the years," he told the court in a matter-of-fact tone.
In a jailhouse interview with The Washington Post the day before he was sentenced, Ames said he was motivated to spy by “financial troubles, immediate and continuing.”
