Aldrich Ames: CIA’s Biggest Leak
How did a CIA officer become America’s most damaging insider threat?
4.4 (30)
167 mins
Aldrich Ames sold US secrets to the Soviet Union and Russia, exposing agents and triggering one of the CIA’s worst espionage disasters.
Ep 1:
The CIA Built Mole
Aldrich Ames rises through the CIA ranks as a skilled case officer, but failed overseas postings, personal turmoil, growing financial pressures, and overlooked warning signs slowly push him toward the Soviet spies he was sworn to defeat.
Ep 2:
The Bulk Compromise
Aldrich Ames hands the KGB a devastating list of Soviet assets, triggering arrests, executions, and vanished informants, while lavish spending, a glamorous new life, and the CIA’s failure to identify its own mole convince him he’s untouchable.
Ep 3:
The Untouchable Spy
Aldrich Ames evades suspicion despite unexplained wealth, failed polygraphs, and mounting evidence, as CIA-FBI rivalries stall the mole hunt until covert surveillance, secret signals, and fears of a Moscow escape finally close in on America’s most dangerous spy.
Ep 4:
The Fallout They Couldn't Hide
After Aldrich Ames pleads guilty to espionage, congressional investigations, prison sentences, and CIA leadership shakeups expose deep intelligence failures, while the lasting damage of his betrayal continues to haunt American counterintelligence decades later.
Discussions (5)
Remy
Level 10 · 4 mo agoyea ames failing upwards in the cia reminds me of bad grad students. the system just passes them along to avoid the problem.
Abigail
Level 2 · 4 mo agoBlaming the system is complete nonsense. He wasn't financially desperate. He was just a greedy guy.
Phyllis
Level 9 · 4 mo agoIt is 100% a fact that polygraphs are complete junk science. They only measure physical anxiety. A detached narcissist without a conscience could easily pass one while lying through their teeth lol.
