George Trofimoff Colonel George Trofimoff ( born March 9 , 1927 ) is a former United States military intelligence officer of Russian descent . He was convicted in a U . S . Federal court as a spy for the Soviet Union during the 1970s and ' 80s . He was sentenced to life imprisonment on September 27 , 2001 . Colonel George Trofimoff remains the most senior officer in U . S . military history to be charged with or convicted of espionage . Background . Trofimoff was born in Berlin , Germany on March 9 , 1927 . His father , Vladimir Vladimirovich Trofimoff , had belonged to the Paget Cadet Corps and , during the Russian Civil War , served as a Major in the anti - communist White Army . His paternal grandfather , Vladimir Ivanovich Trofimoff , a Brigadier General in the Imperial Russian Army General Staff , had been arrested and shot by the CHEKA in 1919 . George ' s mother , Ekaterina Kartali , had been a successful concert pianist before marrying Major Trofimoff in 1926 . After the death of his wife in 1928 , Major Trofimoff descended into abject poverty . In response , he temporarily gave his son to be raised by Vladimir and Antonina Sharavov , both of whom were fellow White emigre s . Antonina ' s son from a previous marriage was Igor Vladimirovich Susemihl . Even into his old age , Trofimoff continued to describe Susemihl as " my brother . " In 1943 , Vladimir Trofimoff remarried and his son moved back in with him and his new wife . However , the family was soon forced to separate again due to Allied bombing raids on Berlin . They would not meet again until 1949 , when George Trofimoff was a U . S . Army officer assigned to the occupation of Germany . In the fall of 1944 , George Trofimoff was ordered to report for conscription into the German Army , or Wehrmacht . Rather than comply , he fled to occupied Czechoslovakia and remained in hiding near Pilsen until the end of the Second World War . Trofimoff then fled the advancing Soviet Army into the American Zone of Occupied Germany . After working as an interpreter for the U . S . Army , Trofimoff made his way illegally to Paris , France . While staying there , he was embraced by Paris ' community of White emigres , many of whom had known his father and grandfather . Soon after , Trofimoff was sponsored by the Society of Friends for emigration to the United States . In December 1947 , he boarded a KLM Royal Dutch Airliner and flew from Amsterdam to New York City . Trofimoff enlisted in the United States Army in 1948 and received a commission in the United States Army Reserve in 1953 . He received an honorable discharge from active duty in 1956 , and retired from the United States Army Reserve with the rank of Colonel in 1987 . From 1959 through 1994 , Trofimoff was employed by the United States Army as a civilian working in military intelligence , serving primarily in the Kingdom of Laos and in West Germany . Espionage . Throughout his career with the United States Army , Trofimoff held SECRET and TOP SECRET clearances , and received periodic briefings in handling classified information . In 1969 , George Trofimoff became the Chief of the United States Army Element at the Nuremberg Joint Interrogation Center ( JIC ) . The JIC , a center for questioning defectors and refugees from the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries , was jointly run by American , French , and West German intelligence services . Colonel Trofimoff had access to all classified information received by or produced by U . S . Army Intelligence at the JIC . His indictment states that , following his promotion to head of the U . S . Army at the JIC , Trofimoff renewed his acquaintance with his foster brother Igor Susemihl . Under the monastic name " Iriney " , Susemihl had become a hieromonk and a Bishop within the Russian Orthodox Church . After learning that Trofimoff was chronically short of funds , Bishop Iriney " recruited him into the service of the KGB . " The Indictment states that the KGB possessed several similar collaborators among Moscow Patriarchate clergy , both inside and outside of the USSR . At the time , Iriney was auxiliary bishop of Munich and West Germany , but later became the Metropolitan of Vienna and Austria in 1975 . He continued to hold this position until his death in 1999 . Beginning in the 1960s , Trofimoff and the Metropolitan met often and maintained a close personal relationship . In a 1999 conversation with an undercover FBI agent , Trofimoff described his recruitment as follows , " . . . it must have been the ' 70s . But it was very informal . . . There were no photographs , there was just talking . . . He would ask me something and I would tell him something . . verbal information . . He had a few questions about current events . . . First , it was just a conversation between the two of us . . . He would ask my opinion on this and that . . . Then , he would maybe ask me , ' Well , what does your unit think about it ? ' Or , ' What does the American government think about it ? ' " Upon being asked whether Bishop Iriney ' s actions made him suspicious , Trofimoff responded , " No , not in the beginning . . . I said I needed money . And I told him my wife bought some furniture and I can ' t pay for it , I don ' t know how to get the money . And he says , ' I tell you what , I ' ll loan it to you . ' So he gave me , I think , 5 , 000 marks and then , it wasn ' t enough , because I needed more , and about three or four weeks later I said to him , ' You gotta help me one more time , and I ' ll give it back to you when I have a chance . ' . . . And that was the end of it . Then he talked to me a couple times . Always like this . Then he says , ' Well , you know , I ' ll tell you what . You don ' t owe me any money . . . And if you need some more , I can give you some more . . . Don ' t worry about it . You ' re going to have to have a few things , this and that . ' And this is how it started . " In 1999 , Col . Trofimoff boasted that he routinely smuggled every classified document he could obtain home to be photographed with a special camera and tripod . The film was passed on to KGB agents during meetings in Austria . According to former KGB General Oleg Kalugin , however , Colonel Trofimoff , who was given the code name " Markiz , " always received his money from Metropolitan Iriney . Trofimoff further explained that Metropolitan Iriney paid him a standard amount of 7 , 000 Deutschmark s per week . The payments were always made in used bills and when Trofimoff needed more money toward a down payment on his house , the Metropolitan " went to his contact in Moscow , " and returned with 90 , 000 DM . This sum was then worth 40 , 000 American dollars . In 2001 , General Kalugin testified under oath to having invited Metropolitan Iriney to visit his dacha in 1978 . According to Kalugin " He did good work , particularly in recruiting Markiz . I wanted to thank him for what he had done . " In 1999 , Trofimoff further explained that Metropolitan Iriney ordered him to cease his espionage work for the KGB in 1987 . According to Trofimoff " . . . he told me to destroy the camera , so I smashed it with a hammer and I threw it in the garbage , far away . " The German BKA , the FBI , and U . S . Federal prosecutors allege that Trofimoff was paid $ 250 , 000 over the course of his espionage career . According to Kalugin , Colonel Trofimoff was also awarded the Order of the Red Banner , which he describes as the USSR ' s " highest military award for meritorious and dangerous service . " General Kalugin further states " After all , he deserved the award for the work he did for us . " Arrest in Germany . In 1992 , a retired KGB archivist named Vasili Mitrokhin defected to the United Kingdom , taking with him thousands of pages of classified papers and handwritten notes on KGB operations at home and abroad . Major Mitrokhin ' s information included evidence that a NATO interrogation center was being compromised by a mole , codenamed " Markiz . " He handed over KGB records that showed classified documents that exceeded 80 volumes – 50 , 000 pages taken over 25 years . Mitrokhin didn ’ t have a name , but he was able to produce a vague sketch of the traitor . Furthermore , the Soviet files he delivered described the spy as a “ career American intelligence officer , " and the courier who carried the secrets as a Russian Orthodox " clergyman " . On December 14 , 1994 , Colonel Trofimoff and Metropolitan Iriney were arrested and interrogated by the German Federal Police , or Bundeskriminalamt , based on the mentioned sketch . While in custody , Trofimoff was informed by his commanding officer that his security clearance and pension had been suspended . Shortly thereafter , Trofimoff and the Metropolitan were brought before Dr . Bode , a judge of the Federal Constitutional Court , for a preliminary hearing . During the hearing , Metropolitan Iriney admitted to having loaned Trofimoff money , but denied having links to the KGB . He did admit , however , that " The KGB was everywhere , also in the Church . " The Metropolitan also admitted to having " a very strong , personal relationship , " with his female housekeeper , Gudula Walker . As Germany ' s espionage laws possess a five year Statute of Limitations , Dr . Bode refused to file charges . As a result , both Colonel Trofimoff and Metropolitan Iriney were released . The Colonel ' s fifth wife , Jutta Trofimoff , was devastated by her husband ' s arrest . She later recalled " I had no knowledge of any spying activities by George . I was completely surprised by his arrest and as soon as he got home that morning I asked him to tell me truthfully what happened . He said , ' I swear on my mother ' s and father ' s graves that I did nothing . ' " Mrs . Trofimoff further states " If I had any doubt that he was telling me the truth I would have divorced him on the spot . " After this short vindication , Colonel and Mrs . Trofimoff left Germany to retire in a gated community in Melbourne , Florida . Retirement . In Florida , Col . Trofimoff was unable to control his spending . According to Colonel Andy Byers , who lived in the same gated community , Trofimoff also loved to entertain his new neighbors with gourmet meals and fine wine . Trofimoff later recalled " . . . we had therefore acquired considerable debts , especially on the so - readily available credit cards . I have to admit that I was the person responsible for getting us into this hole . Jutta kept cautioning me , but I just didn ' t want to listen to reason , and thought to be smart enough to get us out of this dilemma . I took out a second mortgage on the house , which temporarily relieved the burden . . . but only temporarily . " Their debts were compounded when Trofimoff insisted on buying a new Chrysler automobile despite his wife ' s insistence that they could not afford it . Trofimoff was soon reduced to bagging groceries in a local supermarket in the vain hope of getting out of debt . According to Byers , Trofimoff repeatedly said of Metropolitan Iriney " My brother tells me he will leave money for me when he dies . He says it will be difficult to send and it will have to come through Church channels . " The Sting . Beginning on July 10 , 1997 , FBI Agent Dmitri Droujinsky contacted Trofimoff , seeking a meeting . Special Agent Droujinsky , a fellow Russian American , had spent his career impersonating a KGB operative in order to trick suspected moles into confessing their guilt . In 1988 , Droujinsky had successfully finessed a confession from U . S . Army warrant officer James Hall III , who had been spying for both the KGB and the East German Stasi . Giving his name as " Igor Galkin " , an SVR agent assigned to the Russian Embassy , Special Agent Droujinsky told Trofimoff that a defecting analyst had stolen or destroyed most of his file . In exchange for Trofimoff ' s assistance in rebuilding it , Droujinsky offered to compensate him financially . Although Trofimoff was originally deeply skeptical about the offer , Special Agent Droujinsky finally succeeded in gaining his trust . On February 24 , 1999 , Trofimoff met with " Galkin " inside the Comfort Inn at Melbourne , Florida . As video tapes rolled , Trofimoff made detailed descriptions of his services for the KGB and his desperate need for more money . As a rationalization of his conduct , Trofimoff said , " Actually , I tell you . In my soul , I ' m Russian , I ' m not an American . . . I was never an American , it ' s just . . . help for the Motherland . . . I said many times that I was doing it for the Motherland , not for the Bolsheviks , not for , not for the Communists . " In response , Agent Droujinsky promised that the SVR would assist Trofimoff financially , but warned that it would take time . On May 10 , 2000 , Agent Droujinsky telephoned Trofimoff after a silence lasting five months . When Trofimoff said that he had believed himself to have been forgotten , Droujinsky responded " No , no . We did not forget you , George . Listen , George , I have good news for you . . . Everything has been approved . . . And we ' re finalizing the last of the details . And can I meet you in Tampa on June 14 ? . . . I will call you about one week before that . . . to tell you exactly what time and place . " Deeply moved , Trofimoff responded " Oh , Igor , you ' re , uh , saving my life . . . I was ready to . . . Wonderful . . . I thank you very much . . . Bye - Bye . " On June 24 , 2000 , Col . Trofimoff arrived at the Tampa International Airport Hilton Hotel to meet " Igor Galkin " , who had promised to give him $ 20 , 000 in cash . Instead , Trofimoff was arrested by the FBI and charged with espionage . According to Assistant U . S . Attorney Terry Furr " Droujinsky ' s work was masterful . This guy ' s the finest undercover agent I ' ve ever seen . There ' s no one close to him . . . He ' s an artist like Beethoven . " Trial and conviction . The trial of Colonel George Trofimoff began at the Sam E . Gibbons U . S . Courthouse in Tampa on June 4 . 2001 . U . S . Attorney for Florida , Donna Bucella , " declined to estimate the damage wrought " by Trofimoff ' s suspected spying , stating that " several factors suggested a major security breach , including the sensitivity of the Nuremberg center , a NATO facility staffed by Germans , British , French and Americans ; . . . Trofimoff ' s clearance to view virtually any documents , and his longevity in the job . " His court trial was unprecedented in that a witness for the prosecution was former KGB General Oleg Kalugin , who had been head of the foreign counterintelligence , or K branch , of the KGB First Chief Directorate . Upon being asked whether he knew the name of Agent " Markiz , " Kalugin responded " Yes . I did . His name was George Trofimoff . " General Kalugin further described his own meeting with Col . Trofimoff at a location in Austria . Another witness for the prosecution was former U . S . Marine Clayton Lonetree , who testified about his own experiences with the KGB ' s recruiting techniques . On 26 June 2001 , a Federal jury in Tampa , Florida convicted Trofimoff of spying for the Soviet Union . The jury foreman , Mark King , later said that an innocent man would have informed the FBI upon being contacted by " Galkin . " King also said of Trofimoff " He often seemed to be lying . His story did not jibe . " Despite his attorney ' s plea for leniency , Trofimoff was then sentenced to life imprisonment . Even from Federal Prison , Trofimoff maintains his innocence . Trofimoff says he has always been a loyal U . S . Army officer and " a patriot that served this country for 46 years and a half or 47 years . " He has also recanted his admissions of espionage to Agent Droujinsky , saying he only made himself out to be a spy in order to obtain money from the Russian Orthodox Church . Trofimoff further states that he believed Droujinsky would only help him only if he were in such a dire situation . Other notable American moles . Other Agents in place in the US Government or Military who worked as a Mole for either the KGB or the SVR , include :