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- [00:00]
Sachi Kol
Hey, Scamflancers listeners, if you're as hooked on these jaw dropping schemes as we are, you'll love Wondry. Think of it as your all access. Past the world of scams, ad free episodes, early access and exclusive deep dives that uncover even more shocking details. Don't just listen. Immerse yourself in the chaos with Wondry plus.
- [00:26]
Sarah Hagie
Sachi. Don't you think the genre of like spy movies and TV shows are kind of skewed towards how overly competent they are? But really there's no way it's as glamorous or chic as like James Bond or whatever.
- [00:40]
Sachi Kol
I think most spies are probably pretty mundane people. That's how they're getting away with it, you know.
- [00:45]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, I mean, ultimately they are just government workers who as we know from real life and this show gets away with quite a lot.
- [00:54]
Sachi Kol
I would be bad at that job. I would love to tell everybody everything.
- [00:57]
Sarah Hagie
Well, today I'm going to tell you the story of a double agent so gross and incompetent that he basically failed his way to the center of U.S. russia relations during the Cold War. And he did so much damage, even spy agencies had to admit they fucked up. It's a gloomy February morning in 1994 in an upscale neighborhood in Arlington, Virginia. Rosario Ames is putting on makeup while her young son plays in the next room. Rosario is in her early 40s with dark eyes, a sharp jawline and short curly hair. Her husband, Aldrich Ames, who goes by Rick, walks into the room. He says he's been called into work even though it's President's Day weekend. Rosario probably isn't surprised. Rick's been a CIA agent for more than 30 years and it's not unusual for him to work holidays. Rosario reaches for her usual dark red lipstick when the doorbell rings. She tightens her robe and heads to the top of the stairs as the housekeeper answers the door. Standing outside are a man and a woman, both wearing suits. They tell Rosario that they're FBI agents and ask her to step outside. Then they share some shocking news. Her husband has just been arrested on charges of espionage and they're here to arrest her too. When Rosario looks out to the lawn, she sees that the house is surrounded by FBI vehicles.
- [02:34]
Sachi Kol
This is like the best episode of Real Housewives in the world. This is Sprinter van on bath salts. I love it.
- [02:42]
Sarah Hagie
Yes. And in a panic, Rosario runs up the stairs to the guest bedroom. She wakes up her mom and asks her to take care of her son. The agents tell Rosario to remove her jewelry and leave her purse behind. She tries hard not to cry as she promises her son that she'll be home soon. But Rosario likely knows that this is a lie, because for nearly a decade, Rick's been working as a double agent for the Soviet Union. He's been sharing CIA secrets that have sabotaged undercover operations and even gotten people killed. Rosario has known about this for the past two years, but instead of turning him in, she chose to help her husband hide his secrets. As the agents escort Rosario out, she looks back at her beautiful house one last time. She knows things are about to change forever. Soon, everyone will learn that Rick didn't pay for their extravagant lifestyle with CIA paychecks. He paid for it by selling out his country. Despite being one of the most bumbling double agents of all time. It took years for the CIA and the FBI to finally uncover Rick's treason. And now that he's been caught, the damage he's caused and the lives lost due to his crimes will cause a reckoning that will completely reshape US Intelligence forever.
- [04:19]
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- [04:20]
Sachi Kol
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- [04:22]
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- [05:17]
Sarah Hagie
Contact us from Wondery I'm Sarah Hagie and I'm Sachi Cole and this is Scamfluencers. Come and give me your attention. I won't ever learn my lesson. Turn my speakers to 11 I feel like a legend. Throughout his career at the CIA, Rick Ames was known as a lazy, unmotivated drunk. He should have washed out. But despite poor performance reviews, he just Kept failing up. He landed bigger and better assignments and with them, access to classified secrets about the Soviet Union. And when money got tight, he saw an opportunity to turn these secrets into cold hard cash. For almost a decade, Rick sold government secrets to Russia's KGB in exchange for a comfortable upper middle class life with his beloved wife. And by the time he was finally arrested, Rick had done more harm to national security than any other agent in CIA history. This is Rick Ames. The spot who told too much? It's the summer of 1957 at the CIA's headquarters in Langley, Virginia, and 16 year old Rick Ames is sitting in a drab office. He pushes his thick black glasses up his nose as he sifts through documents. We actually have a picture from Rick's high school yearbook. Sachi, can you describe him?
- [06:49]
Sachi Kol
Oh yeah, he's a nerd. He's very Buddy Holly. He's got thick glasses, his hair is slick back, he's got very big ears. He's a nerd.
- [06:59]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, he's pretty classic. And while some American teenagers spend their summers working in retail, Rick's just started a summer job as a record analyst for the CIA. Rick was born in a small Wisconsin town to two teachers. His mom taught English and his dad, Carlton was a college professor specializing in the history of Europe and Asia. But Carleton wasn't particularly well liked. His co workers thought he was boring and viewed him as a Nepo baby. Rick's grandfather was the president of the university. But everything changed five years earlier when Carlton was recruited by the CIA for his knowledge of Burmese affairs. Since then, the family has settled into a Virginia suburb not far from CIA headquarters. But Carlton isn't doing much better at his new job. He has a serious drinking problem and he constantly gets negative reviews from his superiors. He even gets placed on a six month probationary period. But somehow he never loses his job. At this time, the CIA is only a decade old. It's being run like an old boys club. Between the culture of loyalty and a lack of external oversight, it's not so surprising that the CIA shuffles mediocre workers between departments instead of just firing them. Rick has a lot in common with his dad. They both love poetry, drama and world history. But Rick doesn't want to follow in his dad's footsteps professionally. He's in his high school's drama club and wants to pursue acting. Still, he can't turn down a cushy summer gig. Rick spends his last few summers of high school at the CIA before graduating in 1959. That August, he heads to the University of Chicago. He's technically a history major, but he's way more dedicated to the local theater scene. After spending more time on stage than in class, Rick, he flunks out of college. In less than two years, Rick gets a job working as a technical director at a Chicago theater. But ultimately, he just isn't that talented. When his acting career stalls, he moves back to Virginia. In 1962, 21 year old Rick carries on the family tradition and uses nepotism to get hired as a typist at the CIA. And though it isn't his dream job, he likes the prestige that comes with it. It has a lot of things he probably enjoyed about theater, praise and drama. He talks about the job's appeal to the New York Times. A few years later, Saatchi, can you read some of it? Yeah.
- [09:47]
Sachi Kol
He said, I felt proud and selected. They made a great effort to cultivate a sense of being in the elite. Kids responded to that. Certainly I did. The ethics of espionage, of telling lies, cover stories. This didn't bother too many people. It didn't bother me. There was a sense of fun. This is so weird to have this level of detachment with the kind of work that you're doing when the work that you're doing is with the government and with like, real people and like, has a real human toll. He's just so cold about the work that he's in.
- [10:21]
Sarah Hagie
Listen, I truly believe you cannot trust a failed actor who probably has a chip on their shoulder. Unfortunately, this new CIA gig is not the only way Rick is following in his father's footsteps. The same year Rick rejoins the CIA, he gets arrested for intoxication. Rick spends five years as a typist while he takes college courses on the side. He needs an actual degree if he wants to move up the CIA's ranks. In those five years, he gets arrested twice more for. For reckless driving and speeding, likely because of his heavy drinking. All to say, in his 20s, Rick is a bit of a mess, but somehow he manages to graduate in 1967.
- [11:08]
Sachi Kol
Yeah, utterly unsurprising. Give him the keys, make him the president. Who cares?
- [11:12]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah. Obviously Rick doesn't seem like the kind of guy who should be trusted to protect national security. He's sloppy and disorganized even when he's sober. And when he applies to the CIA's career trainee program to become an operative rather than a desk clerk, they conclude he lacks the social skills needed to recruit new spies, an essential part of the job. Still, somehow he gets in. Rick spends two years in the training program. And that's where he meets Nancy, a beautiful blonde fellow trainee. She's everything Rick isn't. Determined and industrious. They fall in love and Rick's life as a CIA careerman starts falling into place. In 1968, he graduates from the trainee program and the following year he and Nancy get married. By the end of the 1960s, Rick seems to have everything a 28 year old could ask for. A secure job, a college degree, and the love of his life. Even if he didn't work particularly hard for any of it. But as he settles into the CIA, he'll get a taste of a life of luxury, which kicks off his never ending quest for more. It's December of 1974, six years into Rick's tenure as a CIA agent. At the office Christmas party in Washington D.C. jingle Bells plays as agents and their spouses sip cocktails and chat about their holiday plans. But Rick's not just sipping as usual. He's a guy who's embarrassingly drunk at a work party. A security guard is casually making the rounds when he walks in on Rick in a compromising position. Not with his wife, Nancy, but with another female CIA agent, Sarah.
- [13:07]
Sachi Kol
You know, I think everybody should get a divorce. I do think in this case, Nancy should also kill him.
- [13:13]
Sarah Hagie
Well, she definitely has the skills. Rick and Nancy returned to D.C. two years ago after spending three years in Turkey where Rick was posted as an operations officer. His job was to recruit Soviet informants, but during his time there, Rick apparently didn't recruit a single person. Maybe people didn't trust him. Maybe he was just lazy. Or maybe it's a combination of both. Either way, the CIA boys club culture is still in effect. So instead of being fired, Rick was brought back to Virginia to work a desk job. His co workers all see that he's underperforming, but Rick apparently does not. Instead, he's becoming resentful. The way he sees it, he's underappreciated and underutilized.
- [14:04]
Sachi Kol
Anytime you work with a guy who says that he is underappreciated and underutilized, he is a super villain. There are no men in any workplaces being underappreciated. Underutilized, maybe, but they are not being underappreciated.
- [14:18]
Sarah Hagie
No, not at all. Not remotely. I feel like it is the biggest red flag. But surprisingly, Rick is actually decent at his new desk job and gets good performance reviews for the first time in his life. But he still has a reputation for being messy. He's constantly drunk, his clothes are always Disheveled and his teeth are rotting. And now he's been caught fooling around with a colleague at a work party. But in 1976, Rick gets another chance to prove himself. He's assigned to the CIA's Manhattan office, where for the first time, he'll actually work as a spy. His job is to meet Russians working for the United nations and pump them for information. To fit the part, the CIA gives Rick a new identity as a successful Manhattan businessman. He moves into a subsidized luxury apartment and is given a generous entertainment allowance. He treats himself to fancy dinners and nights out, all in the name of getting closer to his targets. But he fumbles a bag almost immediately. In his first year on the job, he leaves a briefcase full of classified documents on the subway. Still, during his time in New York, he receives the highest performance reviews of his entire career. Rick is on the rise. Meanwhile, Nancy's CIA career has stalled out. Things got complicated after she married Rick. Some people say the CIA forbade romantic relationships between colleagues. But Nancy was also frustrated after repeatedly hitting the glass ceiling. By the time they get to New York, she's left the CIA.
- [16:04]
Sachi Kol
I mean, you know what I'm gonna say. Women who get married tend to be less fulfilled at work. They make less money. They have a harder time getting career development. She should divorce him and then she should kill him and then she should eat his bones.
- [16:16]
Sarah Hagie
Yes. I mean, it's no secret that being an ambitious woman is the most punishable crime of all time, right?
- [16:24]
Sachi Kol
Nothing worse than a woman who is trying to.
- [16:28]
Sarah Hagie
Well, it's the CIA's loss. Nancy finds a fancy new job in New York. She and Rick are living large, but their relationship is becoming increasingly strained. Rick is growing resentful that he has to keep turning down overseas assignments so Nancy can stay in New York. But this changes in 1981, when Rick is rewarded with a coveted international position in Mexico City. Rick is sick of turning down plum assignments, but Nancy is adamant about keeping her New York City life. So the two make a pact. She'll stay behind and they'll try a long distance marriage. Rick is setting out on his own in Mexico City. And there, away from his increasingly distant wife, he'll meet another woman who will change the course of his career and inspire him to chase even bigger, more expensive dreams. It's late 1982 in Mexico City. Maria del Rosario Cassis Dupuis, who goes by Rosario, is sipping a cocktail at a party for diplomats stationed in the city. Rosario is a cultural attache at the Colombian embassy. She's an extremely smart, charming and worldly 29 year old with a long angular face, dark brown eyes and big curly hair. She's from Colombia and has an impressive resume. She spent a year studying at Princeton, speaks five languages, and is working on a PhD in literature. But she's also got a big secret. Rosario was recently recruited by the CIA as a paid informant to get dirt on other diplomats without the Colombian government knowing anything about it. At the party, a CIA employee introduces Rosario to her new case officer, Rick Ames.
- [18:24]
Sachi Kol
Okay, quite the gruesome twosome. I'm into it. I feel like they're somehow going to get in trouble together.
- [18:30]
Sarah Hagie
You know, I think they both have a lot of integrity, so probably not, right? Hmm. At this point, Rick is 40 years old and still a bit of a mess. Since leaving New York, he slipped back into his old lackluster ways. He's already had at least three affairs, and at the embassy, he's known as a drunken sad sack. Not long after getting to Mexico, he got into another drunk driving accident. And he frequently has drunken arguments with other diplomats. His superior tells Rick he should get assessed for alcohol addiction when he gets back to the States. But Rick just constantly complains that his bosses don't respect him. Regardless of this high key loser energy, Rosario is immediately smitten by Rick. The duo launch an illicit romance. I guess being bad at your job doesn't mean you're bad with women. And we actually have a picture of them from around this time. Sachi, please observe.
- [19:32]
Sachi Kol
All right, so he still looks like a nerd. He's just like a skinny white guy with, you know, glasses and a Sesame street ass mustache. She's the hottest woman in the world. She's shaped like a glass Coke bottle. I understand what he's getting out of it. I'm a little unclear on what it is in it for her.
- [19:52]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, I mean, 29 year olds, what can you say?
- [19:57]
Sachi Kol
What can you say?
- [19:58]
Sarah Hagie
If it sounds like a conflict of interest for Rick to date Rosario, that's because it is. For obvious reasons, CIA case officers are prohibited from having relations with their agents or with foreign nationals. At the very least, they should report their relationship to their superiors. But Rick seems to have no problem putting his personal desires over the needs of national security. Later, Rosario claims she didn't even know Rick was a CIA agent until after they started dating. Which seems hard to believe, especially given that, according to CIA gossip, Rick and Rosario apparently hook up in the CIA safe house in Mexico City.
- [20:42]
Sachi Kol
This is like an episode from Get Smart that never made it to air because it didn't test well.
- [20:48]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, and the male lead is disgusting.
- [20:52]
Sachi Kol
I don't think you want to fuck Maxwell Smart either.
- [20:55]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, but he doesn't have rotten teeth.
- [20:57]
Sachi Kol
That's true.
- [20:58]
Sarah Hagie
Before long, the pair are so in love that Rick is ready to settle down for real. So he proposes marriage. Rosario is ecstatic and says yes, even though she knows about Rick's wife. They figure that's a problem for later. But about a year into their romance, reality comes knocking. Rick's former boss calls him back to the Virginia headquarters for a new assignment, and Rosario is so in love that she gives up her diplomat job to follow him. Rosario is excited to start her life in the US With Rick, and Rick just wants Rosario to be happy and comfortable. He'll do anything to build his dream life with his new fiance, no matter who he has to hurt in the process. It's late 1984 at CIA headquarters in Virginia. Rick sits in his office and aimlessly leafs through a document about the KGB. Rick, now 43, has been back in Virginia for a year, and things are going well for him. He's sharing an apartment with his fiance, Rosario, and he's got yet another fancy job title, despite his many missteps and lackluster performance in Mexico. A 1994 Los Angeles Times article about Rick sums it up better than we can Saatchi. Can you read some of it? Yes.
- [22:22]
Sachi Kol
They write, despite his struggles with his career, Ames returned to Washington and was inexplicably promoted to the prestigious post of head of Soviet Counterintelligence. They're just giving jobs away over there. They weren't just letting anybody do anything.
- [22:37]
Sarah Hagie
They have, like a bingo spinning thing, and they just pull out a job, and it's like, okay, Rick, there you go. I want one. So Rick is now overseeing all American efforts against the Soviet Union. The promotion baffles some of his colleagues, but it seems like it's mostly designed to keep him out of trouble. He's back behind a desk, and while he has access to some of the CIA's most sensitive Soviet cases, he's no longer in the field carrying out operations, or leaving classified information on public transit. Rick should be grateful for everything he has, but he just wants more. More respect, more money, more power. He's been at the CIA for 22 years and resents being locked away in an office. His frustration is a little detached from reality. While Rick thinks he deserves better, he was involved in two security breaches in the past year alone. His colleagues don't even think he deserves his current role. But the thing driving most of Rick's frustration right now is money. He's going through an expensive divorce from Nancy and struggling to pay for his new life with Rosario. Rick is unwilling to give up the lifestyle he thinks they both deserve, and he's already gone into debt. Furnishing their new home around this time, Rick gets a new assignment to build relationships with KGB officers in the hopes of recruiting them to become double agents. But Rick's mounting financial issues and growing resentment towards the CIA creates the perfect storm. He cares more about making extra money than he does about the actual work, and as soon as he realizes how valuable his new access is, he starts scheming. Rick has never been motivated by the geopolitical implications of his job, but he's about to prove he can take initiative when it benefits him personally. Rick is about to sell out his country and put real lives at risk. All to make a quick buck.
- [24:54]
Sachi Kol
Sarah, do you ever wish you had ways to save more money?
- [24:57]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, I do. Literally all the time. Why?
- [25:00]
Sachi Kol
Well, if you open a Chime checking account, there are no monthly fees and no maintenance fees. Plus when you set up direct deposit through Chime, you can get access to fee free features like free overdraft coverage. That means no more headaches over overdraft fees and missed payments.
- [25:15]
Sarah Hagie
My younger self would have definitely benefited from this.
- [25:18]
Sachi Kol
And you can get paid up to two days early through direct deposit with Chime, not to mention access to over 47,000 fee free ATMs. That's more than the top three national banks combined.
- [25:29]
Sarah Hagie
That would really come in handy.
- [25:32]
Sachi Kol
Work on your financial goals through Chime today. Open an account in 2 minutes@chime.com scampod that's chime.com scampod Chime feels like progress. Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services and debit card provided by.
- [25:46]
Sarah Hagie
The Bancorp Bank NA or Stride Bank NA members, FDIC Spot me Eligibility requirements.
- [25:49]
Sachi Kol
And overdraft limits apply. Timing depends on submission of payment file Fees apply at out of network ATMs.
- [25:52]
Sarah Hagie
Bank ranking and number of ATMs according to US News and World Report 2023.
- [25:54]
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- [26:33]
Sarah Hagie
It's April 1985, in Washington, DC. A slightly tipsy Rick is standing outside of the Russian embassy holding a plastic bag containing one item, an envelope. Rick's been with the CIA for more than two decades now, and through all the ups and downs, he's been loyal. But today, he's about to betray his longtime employers and his country. For about a year, Rick's been using a fake identity to meet regularly with a KGB officer trying to get intel about Russians infiltrating the us. But recently he met a Soviet embassy official named Sergey Chuvakin. Sergei is slim with a square jaw and perfectly swept brown hair. To be clear, Sergei isn't a CIA ally. He's just a regular Russian diplomat. But Rick sees him as an opportunity to make some money. Tensions are running high between the US and the USSR right now. The CIA and the FBI are trying to recruit Soviet spies to work as double agents for operation courtship, the US's plan to infiltrate Russian operations in Washington. And this gives Rick an idea. Rick takes a deep breath and walks directly into the Russian embassy when Sergey, his new contact, approaches. Rick silently hands over an envelope and leaves. Inside is a letter addressed to the highest ranking KGB officer Rick knows of. And it names two of the Soviets turned FBI agents, which is a major breach. In one move, Rick has compromised any operations using these agents and put their lives at risk because the KGB does not tolerate traitors. And to prove he's legit, Rick includes details about his job at the CIA and his actual name, which is basically unheard of in the world of spies for obvious reasons. And finally, he makes a request for $50,000.
- [28:45]
Sachi Kol
Is this the dumbest man in America? He's a worse spy than Inspector Gadget. Inspector Gadget had gadgets. Everybody knew it was Inspector Gadget. Not a very good spy, but he had like a hat that became a helicopter.
- [29:00]
Sarah Hagie
He takes nothing seriously. Rick is like if Mr. Magoo was a drunk spy, I don't even know how to describe it. And he justifies this massive security breach by telling himself that these people are probably triple agents, Russians who are just pretending to be on America's side, but who actually report information back to the kgb. So he doesn't feel too bad about whatever happens to them. He's more concerned with cashing in on this intel. And it works. A few weeks later, Rick meets Sergei again, and he hands Rick $50,000 in cash. Rick later claims he planned this as a one time thing, that he'd just sell a few names to get himself and Rosario out of debt. But this first breach proved to him how easy it is to work as a double agent. And now he wants more. Getting out of debt is nice, but a life of luxury is even better. He's already dreaming of fancy cars, nice clothes, and a mansion for him and Rosario Saatchi. Can you read what he says years later, in an investigative interview with an Arizona state senator?
- [30:13]
Sachi Kol
Yeah, he says, I'm still puzzled as to what took me to the next steps. The main factor, on balance, I think, was a realization after I had received the $50,000 was a sense of the enormity of what I had done. But certainly underlying it was the conviction that there was as much money as I could ever use. We've already talked before about like, how detached this guy is from what he's doing. He's like, oh, I don't know what made me do it. I don't know how I got there. I just realized that I had done it and it was a huge crime. And also it was super easy. Why wouldn't I have done it?
- [30:44]
Sarah Hagie
Yes. And in the same interview, Rick casually says that all of this stems from his overreaction to being in debt. But now that he's started working with the Russians, he's in way over his head. And soon his actions will have deadly consequences for the spies he's selling out. It's June of 1985, and Rick is walking out of the CIA headquarters with several plastic bags. Though his hair is thinning and gray, Rick looks more or less the same as he did when he started at the CIA. But despite appearances, things have changed. It's been two months since Rick sold out two Soviet double agents in exchange for $50,000 in cash. It's worth noting that Rosario is apparently unaware of this. She says that Rick simply told her he got a windfall from an old investment. Rick finally paid off his debts, and so far nothing bad has happened. So today he's upping the ante by a lot. The bags he's carrying contain about six pounds of documents, all filled with top secret CIA information, including the names of more than 10 Soviet double agents working for the CIA and FBI. And to be very clear, this was completely unprompted. The KGB didn't ask Rick to bring them more information. But Rick's grown increasingly frustrated with his work at the CIA. After decades of service, he's still making less than $70,000 per year. So he tells himself he deserves whatever the Russians are willing to give him to keep the cash flowing. He's selling off a mountain of information that could jeopardize U.S. operations and get people killed. Some later speculate that Rick panicked, realizing that any Soviet intelligence officer secretly working for the United States might discover his betrayal. So to cover his tracks, he betrays all of them, knowing that the Russian government would kill them all. Rick cares more about covering his ass and lining his pockets than protecting the lives of CIA operatives.
- [33:04]
Sachi Kol
This guy is like evil Mr. Magoo. He is not asked to bring any of this. He's like, but I'm going to because I'm disgruntled at work. And then his plan is like, oh, they'll just kill each other and then I won't be held accountable for anything. It's so dumb and so monstrous.
- [33:22]
Sarah Hagie
He really is just not thinking about the global implications in a real way. And once again, Rick simply walks into the Russian embassy and hands his package to Sergei. In response, the KGB tells him they've set aside $2 million that they'll pay out in installments for his continued cooperation. That's worth about $6 million today. For the next few months, Rick keeps leaking CIA secrets and the Russian government keeps paying him, usually between $20,000 and $50,000 at a time. But back at Langley, things are unraveling. Remember those two double agents Rick initially sold out for $50,000? Well, they were legitimately on the CIA's side. Rick was wrong about them being triple agents. And now, because of Rick, they've both been ordered back to Russia, where they will be executed. It's not clear when Rick learns that his betrayal has deadly consequences. But when the information does get back to him, he doesn't feel guilty at all. He's been blinded by power and money, and the fallout is far from over. Slowly, other people from the six pound stack of documents Rick sold also start to disappear. At this point, it's clear to the CIA that they have a mole. As they start investigating, Rick panics. After only a few months of working with the Soviets, it seems like it's all about to come crashing down. And soon a new double agent will give the CIA its first lead. It's August 1985, four months into Rick's double life. He's sitting in his office sweating because the CIA just announced that a KGB officer named Yorchenko has defected. He's the highest ranking Soviet officer to ever become a double agent. This is a huge deal. The CIA is usually Too scared of harsh retaliation from the Soviet Union to pursue KGB officers. But Rick isn't celebrating because Yurchenko says he knows all about the CIA's mole. Rick's never worked with him directly, but Yurchenko was high up at the kgb, so he probably knows all about Rick's double crossing. Rick feels sick until Yorchenko starts talking. He reveals details about the mole, and it's not Rick. In an incredible stroke of luck, there happens to be another mole in the CIA Soviet division. A man who sold CIA secrets to the KGB after being fired a few years earlier. The CIA is satisfied they found the source of their leak, and everyone moves on.
- [36:20]
Sachi Kol
Okay, so this is a great time for him to stop doing this, right? Because he could conceivably get away with everything. Yeah, but I bet he doesn't. Something tells me he won't.
- [36:30]
Sarah Hagie
Why would the dumbest spy alive learn any single thing? Rick is just relieved. And he has even more to celebrate, because after two years, his divorce from Nancy is finalized. It's unclear why it took so long, but Rick is more than ready to move on. He and Rosario get married 10 days later. And all the while, Rosario allegedly still doesn't know about Rick's secret second job. Everything is falling into place. And as his office mourns their fallen Russian colleagues and celebrates the capture of the mole, Rick goes right back to selling CIA secrets. Apparently, he doesn't have much remorse for the fact that he caused those deaths. In an interview with the New York Times years later, he says he mainly regrets giving away all the names at once because the KGB killed them all in quick succession, making it obvious Amol was to blame.
- [37:29]
Sachi Kol
Okay, so Rick isn't even bothering with his word salad anymore to excuse what he's done. He doesn't regret it. He only regrets being caught. Incredible.
- [37:40]
Sarah Hagie
Yes. And around this time, Rick gets a swanky new placement in Rome. His colleagues are furious because Rick just placed in the bottom quarter of his class in an annual assessment. So some see this move as an unearned promotion. We don't know why the CIA chose Rick for the job, but either way, he and Rosario are thrilled about their new adventure in Italy. They enroll in Italian classes and start dreaming up their Roman holiday. Rick's excited to be in Europe for the glamour of it all, but also because it'll be easier for him to work directly with the KGB. In the US all of the CIA's meetings were monitored closely by the FBI. Rick had to report every interaction he had with the sources. And every time he visited an embassy, which, of course, he lied about. But away from the FBI's watchful eye, Rick can now work more freely as a mole.
- [38:40]
Sachi Kol
Oh, well, thank God. I mean, he was under such restrictions before when he was bringing people bags of names.
- [38:46]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah. You know, I think Rick deserves to let his hair down and just freely be a mole and, you know, have peace. Right. And to their credit, the CIA and FBI both notice that Rick isn't submitting as many reports about his KGB meetings as he's supposed to. They ask him to be more thorough, but their concerns seem to fall through the cracks, possibly because of poor communication between the CIA and the FBI around this time. So nothing changes. Rick continues selling off CIA secrets from across the Atlantic. But back at CIA headquarters, alarm bells are about to start ringing. People are starting to realize they have another mole on their hands. And this time, all signs will point straight to Rick. It's the summer of 1989. Rick's been living in Rome for three years now, and he and Rosario are living their dream life. Rosario had a baby last year who they named Paul. But even though he's a father now, Rick's still selling secrets to the KGB. By now, the Soviets have paid Rick around $1.8 million in total, and they've told him they have another $900,000 set aside for any future secrets he wants to share. Oh, they have. How generous. I know. I love how this is like a business deal where it's like, give it to us in bulk, and we'll pay you this much piecemeal. It's this.
- [40:17]
Sachi Kol
Yeah. Like, they're. It's like a Costco deal for state secrets. I didn't know it was this easy. You could just call up and be like, I have stuff to give you.
- [40:26]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, it all seems pretty simple. And things feel as stable as they can when you're a double agent. So Rick's been splashing out. He buys a flashy red Jaguar. He got a bag and fixed his teeth. At least the top row. And he started wearing $600 genuine leather Italian loafers. He's living the high life he's always dreamed of. The only thing Rick has to worry about is hiding all the money he's pulling in. He's splitting it between multiple American bank accounts, including some in Rosario's name, in addition to one in Italy and three accounts in Switzerland. As they later tell it, Rosario somehow still has no clue there's anything fishy going on. Rick allegedly kept telling her the money was from investments, but because these investments are kind of Shady. She shouldn't tell anyone about them. But he does encourage her to spend the money freely, so she doesn't seem to worry too much about where it comes from. When anyone asks how they're wealthy, they just say that Rosario's family is rich. Since they're all back in Colombia, no one's able to fact check.
- [41:36]
Sachi Kol
I do think you could probably do.
- [41:38]
Sarah Hagie
A little fact checking.
- [41:40]
Sachi Kol
I know it's the late 80s and nobody has Facebook yet, but I think you could maybe do a little recon.
- [41:46]
Sarah Hagie
I bet some people were suspicious. Yeah. But later that year, Rick and Rosario are brought back to reality. His post in Rome is ending, and the CIA is calling him home. They start packing to go back to the US later that month. But what Rick doesn't know is that back at CIA headquarters, his C.O. workers have realized something is wrong because more Soviet double agents keep dying. While the CIA isn't onto him just yet, they figured out there's another mole or maybe a technical breach of some kind. Within two years of Rick's first betrayal, 10 people have been sentenced to death by the KGB. Still, Rick doesn't have the guilty conscience you might expect. He seems to think these people died as a result of the of being in a dangerous line of work and not because of his actions. Rick doesn't know it yet, but both the CIA and FBI have opened up parallel investigations to find the second mole. And this time, they won't stop until they find him. Once Rick is back at home, his colleagues will be able to see firsthand that he's living beyond his means. And they'll start asking questions he can't answer.
- [43:11]
Sachi Kol
Get almost anything you need delivered with Uber Eats. What do I mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parmesan delivered. A little escape?
- [43:20]
Sarah Hagie
No.
- [43:21]
Sachi Kol
A delicious bowl of grapes?
- [43:22]
Sarah Hagie
Yes.
- [43:23]
Sachi Kol
Yes, that.
- [43:23]
Sarah Hagie
An afternoon stroll?
- [43:24]
Sachi Kol
Sorry, no.
- [43:25]
Sarah Hagie
A burrito bowl?
- [43:26]
Sachi Kol
Happily, yes. A day of sunshine?
- [43:29]
Sarah Hagie
No. A box of fine wines?
- [43:30]
Sachi Kol
Yes. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. Get almost.
- [43:34]
Sarah Hagie
Almost anything delivered with Uber Eats.
- [43:36]
Sachi Kol
Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product availability may vary by region.
- [43:40]
Sarah Hagie
See app for details.
- [43:42]
Lindsey Graham
In the fall of 1620, a battered merchant ship called the Mayflower set sail across the Atlantic. It carried 102 men, women, and children, risking it all to start again in the new world. Hi, I'm Lindsey Graham, the host of American Historytellers. Every week, we take you through the moments that shaped America. And in our latest season, we explore the untold story of the pilgrims, one that goes far beyond the familiar tale of the first Thanksgiving. After landing at Cape Cod, the Pilgrims forged an unlikely alliance with the Wampanoag people who helped the Pilgrims survive the most brutal winter they'd ever known, laying the foundation for a powerful national myth. But behind that story lies another one of conflict, betrayal, and brutal violence against the very people who helped the Pilgrim survive. Follow American Historytellers on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of American Historytellers the Mayflower early and ad free right now on wondery.
- [44:47]
Sarah Hagie
It's late 1989 and Diana Worthen is driving down a tree lined suburban street in North Arlington, Virginia. She's a longtime CIA officer with cropped blonde hair and a broad smile. Diana is here to visit her old friends Rick and Rosario, who've just returned from their long stint in Italy. She was stationed in Mexico City at the same time as Rick, and she's been a good friend of the couple ever since. Today, she's helping Rosario pick drapes for her new house. From the outside, Rick and Rosario seem like a pretty normal upper middle class family. Here's a picture of them and their son Paul from around this time. Sachi, can you describe it?
- [45:30]
Sachi Kol
So he kind of looks like Walt Disney now. He's got some big aviator glasses.
- [45:34]
Sarah Hagie
She looks great.
- [45:35]
Sachi Kol
She's wearing lots of jewelry and big sunglasses and they look very moneyed and happy and normal and non spy like.
- [45:43]
Sarah Hagie
Yeah, they seem so normal, which as I know from the Americans, is how you get away with being dastardly double agents. But as Diana pulls into the driveway, she's confused by what she sees. Before Rick and Rosario left for Italy, they lived in a modest one bedroom apartment. But their new home is a literal mansion in a bougie neighborhood with a $50,000 car out front. Diana spots contractors bringing in appliances for a massive kitchen renovation. And when she knocks on the door, a maid answers. It all feels weird to Diana, especially when Rosario mentioned they paid over half a million dollars in cash for the house. Diana knows firsthand that the CIA doesn't pay that well, so after the visit, she shares her suspicions with a few of her colleagues, a small team of women at the CIA who've been working hard to find the mole. They begin tracking Rick's car and even looking through his trash for any possible clues. But it all comes together when they get access to Rick's finances. As one of the women reviews his bank statements, she discovers a lot of unexplained cash going in and out of Rick's account. And most damning of all, when they compare his bank statements to his work calendar, they find that Rick made three big deposits immediately after meeting with his KGB sources back in 1985. The first time he sold CIA secrets. The truth hits Diana hard. Her friend sold out his colleagues, causing multiple deaths, all so he could renovate a house and buy a Jaguar. She doesn't hesitate. Rick made his choice, and now she's ready to make hers. It's time to turn him in. We're back to that cold February morning in 1994, and Rosario is in handcuffs on her front porch. It's been over four years since Diana's visit to the Ames house. The investigation into Rick and Rosario was slow for a bunch of reasons, including the fact that the CIA has been busy. They're dealing with a fallout from the Iran Contra affair, a massive scandal that revealed the US Was secretly providing Iran with weapons. It was so messy that some of the agents investigating Rick were indicted for their own crimes.
- [48:11]
Sachi Kol
This is what I love about when cops have to investigate other cops is that they can't because there's so much corruption within government services that things like this happen. Yeah.
- [48:21]
Sarah Hagie
And in fact, the CIA cops are so corrupt that the FBI has to step in to deal with the Ames. Rosario is being brought in on suspicion that she aided and abetted her husband's crimes. But over the coming months, she keeps repeating the same story. She didn't know anything about his involvement with the KGB until a year and a half ago when she happened to find a suspicious note about the embassy in his wallet. She couldn't make sense of it. And when she pressed him, he finally admitted he was working with the Russians. She says that since then, she's been plagued with a moral dilemma. She wanted to report him, but she feared for her family's safety. But that's not what the CIA thinks because wiretapped conversations from the last five months seem to show Rosario helping Rick. She was caught on tape anxiously offering Rick advice about his crimes. So investigators are suspicious, and some even think she helped him hide his KGB money. Here's one snippet of a phone call between the two. Could you read Rosario's lines?
- [49:29]
Sachi Kol
Rosario? Well, yeah. You're putting the bulk of the stuff.
- [49:33]
Sarah Hagie
In that suitcase, right, Rick? Sometimes, yeah. But I'm going to use the carry on.
- [49:38]
Sachi Kol
Rosario, you are going to have to be a little more imaginative about how you always have this envelope with this big hunk. I mean, really.
- [49:47]
Sarah Hagie
To be clear, Rosario probably means big hunk of cash doesn't Sound good for her? And two months later, when they have their day in court, the couple finally drops their pretenses. Rick and Rosario both plead guilty to conspiring to commit espionage and tax fraud. Rick is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. And Rosario gets just over five years. After a decade of selling CIA secrets and inadvertently ending at least 10 lives, Rick Ames is finally behind bars, with Rosario following suit. The CIA might regret giving Rick so many chances, but now that the truth is out, they're determined to make sure no one like him ever walks through their doors again. As of 2025, there isn't much of an update on the ames family. At 84 years old, Rick is still in prison. Rosario was quietly released in 1998 after serving four years. She's 72 today, but her whereabouts are unknown. After Rick's arrest, the CIA concluded that he, quote, caused more damage to the national security of the United States than any spy in the history of the CIA. And all these years later, Rick has apparently still never shown any remorse for betraying his country and causing the deaths of his co workers. His only regret seems to be the fact that he got caught. All of this happened when the CIA was still a relatively young agency finding its footing. Rick's betrayal made it clear they needed stronger internal safeguards to make sure something like this never happened again. Again. To this day, Rick remains the highest ranking CIA officer ever exposed as a double agent. After Rick's arrest, the CIA launched a massive internal investigation. And what they found was startling. Almost no oversight and poor communication between the CIA and FBI. Rick wasn't exactly subtle, and yet he slipped through the cracks, turning his betrayal into yet another scandal for the CIA. In the end, the CIA did get an agent who fit into their boys club. They just didn't expect him to be working for another country. Sachi, what can you even say? There are so many layers to this, I don't even know where to start.
- [52:23]
Sachi Kol
I guess you could start with the stupidity. It's so dumb. Like the scam was just that he was gonna give up everything he had for, frankly, not a lot of money. He was selling enormous state secrets for like 20 grand. It's just not enough, I guess.
- [52:40]
Sarah Hagie
It's like it's so familiar, you know, as an independent contractor to know how much you're worth, where you're like, I can either make it so that they keep wanting to work with me and give them a good price, or I can stand up for myself and ask for what I'm worth, you know?
- [52:53]
Sachi Kol
Yeah, you know, it's good to ask. A closed mouth does not get fed. And that is the lesson of Rick.
- [52:58]
Sarah Hagie
You know, the thing about Rick that really makes this like a universal story is the level of entitlement. He had to be something kind of like, I don't want to be in the CIA, Dad. I want to act. Goes off, becomes an actor, ends up in the CIA. Poor him failed upwards in such a way that even his colleagues were like, this makes no sense. Like, we know this place is a boys club, but why him? And he still had this really indignant view of things where this guy was like, no, I am the most important man in the world and I deserve more. He just wanted so much and also didn't go hard enough for how important he thought he was. In a way.
- [53:39]
Sachi Kol
Yeah, he had a really profound level of delusion matched with a total inability to do anything and sheer dumb luck. Like he really figured it out and he probably could have gotten away with it ten times over, but he was just so sloppy and stupid.
- [53:56]
Sarah Hagie
From what I can tell, there was no actual plan, even with his money, to my knowledge. He didn't try to launder the money in any way, like, make it seem like it was coming from different sources. He went so hard so fast upon coming back to the US that I'm like, how could you, on the one hand be so reckless and like, in a sense, brave to sell secrets and still be so bad at it. Clearly he doesn't give a shit about any of it. But I do agree that his only regret should be that he did such a bad job. I mean, I think he probably should.
- [54:32]
Sachi Kol
Have some regrets a few times over, but chief amongst them was the lack of organization and the fact that he probably could have done this scam better and bigger and braver and gotten away with it, but he didn't because he was lazy.
- [54:44]
Sarah Hagie
I do think there's an element of this where he could have justified his actions by being like, I work for the CIA. People are getting killed because of me, no matter what. May as well make a buck off it. Why even, like, defect? Go abroad, like, you know, come on.
- [55:01]
Sachi Kol
The thing about Rick, I guess, is that he so clearly believed in nothing except himself. Like, he didn't believe in country, he didn't believe in government, he didn't believe in infrastructure. He didn't believe in the secrets. He didn't believe in the Soviets either. He didn't believe in anything other than.
- [55:15]
Sarah Hagie
His own ability to.
- [55:17]
Sachi Kol
To get rich and be feted. And that is, I think, One of.
- [55:22]
Sarah Hagie
The worst kinds of scammers that we.
- [55:23]
Sachi Kol
Have, Sarah, are like straight white men who believe in themselves so much and they have no other value system. What do you think his wife knew and when do you think she figured it out?
- [55:35]
Sarah Hagie
You know, it seems like he just didn't give a shit at all. That like why would he be so good at hiding it from his wife who clearly does align with him in some way where the most important thing to her was Rick and his money and changing her life to be with him? That I wouldn't be surprised if she had known the whole time or maybe like a year into it. But she's not a dumbass, you know, she was smart enough to be working as a cultural attache at the age of 29. As a woman, she's no dummy. You know, I think she knew pretty.
- [56:07]
Sachi Kol
Early on and I don't know how much it bothered her. It was clearly easy enough that it was out in the open that they could talk about it.
- [56:14]
Sarah Hagie
The conspiracy brained part of myself believes there was probably more to this story than we will ever know because think about how embarrassing, how deeply embarrassing it is for the CIA and the FBI.
- [56:28]
Sachi Kol
I guess the moral of the story is that you shouldn't be a spy and you shouldn't keep secrets and you should tell everybody everything all the time.
- [56:33]
Sarah Hagie
Moral of the story? Do not be an agent. Do not become a spy. Don't get involved in this world. There are ways you can be deceptive and lie to people and be well known and celebrated. And you know what it's called Reality tv. It's called the Traitors. It's called Survivor. It's called Big Brother.
- [56:51]
Sachi Kol
It's just gossip. Everything's gossip.
- [56:53]
Sarah Hagie
It is all just gossip. I agree.
- [57:01]
Sachi Kol
Loving scamflancers get exclusive episodes and early access to new ones. All ad free on Wondri. Join now in the Wondry app, Apple podcasts or Spotify. Before you go, help us out by taking a quick survey@wondry.com survey.
- [57:19]
Sarah Hagie
This is Rick Ames, the Spy who Told Too Much. I'm Sarah Hagie.
- [57:24]
Sachi Kol
And I'm Sachi Kol.
- [57:25]
Sarah Hagie
If you have a tip for us.
- [57:26]
Sachi Kol
On a story that you think we should cover, please email us@scamfluencerswendry.com we use many sources in our research. A few that were particularly helpful were the Spy and the Jack Jaguar by.
- [57:37]
Sarah Hagie
David Wise for Vanity Fair, why I.
- [57:39]
Sachi Kol
Spy by Tim Wiener, Aldrich Ames and the Corruption of the CIA by James Adams. Killer Spy the Inside story of the FBI's pursuit and capture of Aldrich Ames. America's Deadliest Spy by Peter Moss. The Story of Aldrich Ames An American Spy by Tim Wiener, David Johnson and Neal A. Lewis. Nightmover How Aldrich ames sold the CIA to the KGB for $4.6 million by David Wise and the Terrible Secret of Rosario Ames by Sally Quinn for the Washington Post.
- [58:10]
Sarah Hagie
Gabrielle Drollet wrote this episode. Additional writing by us Sachi Cole and Sarah Hagie. Olivia Briley is our story editor. Fact checking by Kalina Newman. Sound design by James Morgan. Additional audio assistance provided by Augustine Lim. Our music supervisor is Scott Vale for frees on sync. Our managing producer is Desi Blaylock. Janine Cornello and Stephanie Jens are our development producers. Our associate producer is Charlotte Miller. Our senior producers are Sarah Enny and Ginny Blume. Our executive producers are Jenny Lauer Beckman and Marshall Louie for Wondery.
- [58:57]
Ad Readers
Oh, hello.
- [58:58]
Sarah Hagie
Hello.
- [58:59]
Ad Readers
Scary story time. The joys of analog media.
- [59:03]
Sarah Hagie
Be kind.
- [59:04]
Ad Readers
Rewind. Never mind. You're here for the special collection. Welcome to Radio Rental. The scariest stories you've ever heard in your life, all told by radio. Real people.
- [59:21]
Sarah Hagie
Oh.
- [59:22]
Ad Readers
And off we go.
- [59:25]
Sarah Hagie
All I could see was the devil's mask he was wearing. This wasn't a human being that I saw. There's something here in this house, Something.
- [59:33]
Ad Readers
Out of this world.
- [59:36]
Sachi Kol
There was a woman moving through the hall.
- [59:39]
Sarah Hagie
I stepped back and I was completely.
- [59:42]
Sachi Kol
Alone in the hallway.
- [59:46]
Ad Readers
Radio Rental is available now. Listen for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.