Peter Debbins Explained

Peter Debbins
Birth Name:Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbins
Codename1:Ikar Lesnikov
Birth Place:Minnesota, U.S.
Education:University of Minnesota
Spouse:Yelena
Known For:Espionage
Occupation:Former U.S. Army Green Beret
Serviceyears:1998–2005
Rank: Captain
Criminal Charge:Conspiracy to gather or deliver defense information to aid a foreign government
Criminal Penalty:188 months in prison
Criminal Status:Incarcerated at ADX Florence

Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbins is an American convicted spy for Russia and a former military officer in the U.S. Army's Special Forces. In August 2020, he was arrested and charged with conspiracy to provide classified defense information to Russian intelligence services. Debbins pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy to commit espionage on November 18, 2020.

Early life

Debbins' mother was Russian and was born in the Soviet Union. Reportedly, she was a survivor of the Holodomor.[1] Debbins met and married his wife in Russia in 1997.[2]

Education

In 1997, Debbins graduated from the University of Minnesota, where he was a member of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.

In 2015, he graduated with a master's degree in Strategic and International Studies from The Institute of World Politics.[3]

Military service

In July 1998, Debbins began his active service duty in the Army. From 1998 to 2005, he was deployed overseas in Korea, Germany, and Azerbaijan.[4] During this time, Debbins joined the Special Forces at the behest of his Russian contacts and became a Captain.[5]

In December 2005, he was honorably discharged.

He served in the United States Army's inactive reserve from 2005 until 2010.[6]

Peter Debbins was an instructor with IWP's Cyber Intelligence Initiative.[7]

Foreign recruitment

Debbins was first approached by Russian officers in December 1996. During this encounter, he told the officers that he was a "son of Russia." In 1997, shortly after his college graduation, Debbins once again returned to Russia, where he was given the code name "Ikar Lesnikov". In one meeting in 2003, Debbins accepted a bottle of Cognac and a Russian military uniform as payment. In 2008, Debbins relayed his classified activities in the Special Forces to Russian agents and offered his former Special Forces colleagues' names for potential recruitment. Up until at least 2011, Debbins would periodically visit Russia in order to meet with Russian intelligence officers. In 2012, the GRU contacted his father-in-law, a Colonel in the Russian Air Force, about the affair.[8]

In 2004, Debbins' security clearance was suspended after an unspecified incident in Azerbaijan. Debbins then entered the private sector as a consultant on Azerbaijan in 2005. In 2013 Debbins founded a company called Horizon Leadership Group (HLG).[9] HLG pitched a plan to build a training center in Armenia which never came to fruition. The US state department gave the standard denial in response to questions about the existence of this program.[10] Debbins gave several lectures at the Institute for World Politics in 2016,[11] specifically pertaining to Russia's relationship with Armenia and the potential for conflict in the region. Debbins' activities in the Lesser Caucasus were his primary contribution to Russian Intelligence though this detail was less publicized after his arrest.

Arrest and legal proceedings

Debbins was arrested on August 21, 2020 at his home in Gainesville, Virginia.[12] [13] It is noteworthy that his arrest immediately preceded the 2020 Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, considering his primary expertise in this relatively obscure region detailed above.

On November 18, 2020, Debbins pleaded guilty in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia to one count of conspiracy to commit espionage, which carries a penalty of up to life in prison.[14]

In May 2021, U.S. District Judge Claude Hilton sentenced Debbins to 188 months in federal prison. Debbins is currently incarcerated at ADX Florence, the federal supermax in Florence, Colorado.[15] [16] [17] According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons he is scheduled for release on December 28, 2033.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2018-02-20. Alumnus Spotlight: Peter Debbins, Army Special Forces, Russia analyst, and cyber instructor. 2021-06-15. The Institute of World Politics. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20200805103646/https://www.iwp.edu/students-alumni/2018/02/20/alumnus-spotlight-peter-debbins-army-special-forces-russia-analyst-and-cyber-instructor/. 2020-08-05 . dead.
  2. News: Barakat . Matthew . Feds charge former Green Beret with espionage with Russia . August 21, 2020 . . Debbins' mother was born in the Soviet Union, and Debbins met his wife in the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, where they were married in 1997, according to the indictment. ... In one meeting with Russian intelligence, he accepted a bottle of Cognac and a Russian military uniform as payment, according to the indictment. . https://archive.today/20201006071144/https://apnews.com/article/1b53c40143dd6603925f9932f22dcbd5 . October 6, 2020 . live.
  3. Web site: Alumnus Spotlight: Peter Debbins, Army Special Forces, Russia analyst, and cyber instructor . August 21, 2020 . Peter Debbins graduated from IWP in 2015 with a Professional M.A. in Strategic and International Studies. . iwp.edu . . https://archive.today/20200821221045/https://www.iwp.edu/students-alumni/2018/02/20/alumnus-spotlight-peter-debbins-army-special-forces-russia-analyst-and-cyber-instructor/ . August 21, 2020 . dead . August 22, 2020 .
  4. Web site: United States of America v. Peter Rafael Dzibinski Debbins . indictment . . August 20, 2020 . August 21, 2020 . August 22, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200822064402/https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1307186/download . live .
  5. News: . Former Army Green Beret Sentenced for Russian Espionage Conspiracy . . . May 14, 2021 . May 24, 2021 . May 24, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210524220102/https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/former-army-green-beret-sentenced-russian-espionage-conspiracy . live .
  6. News: Goldman . Adam . Ex-Green Beret Charged With Spying for Russia in Elaborate Scheme . August 21, 2020 . . He served in the United States Army's inactive reserve from 2005 until 2010. . https://archive.today/20200821233451/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/21/us/politics/peter-debbins-russia-spying.html . August 21, 2020 . live . August 22, 2020 .
  7. Web site: Peter Debbins . 17 November 2020 . iwp.edu . . https://web.archive.org/web/20200821201831/https://www.iwp.edu/cyber-intelligence-initiative-team/peter-debbins/ . 21 August 2020 . Peter Debbins is an instructor with IWP's Cyber Intelligence Initiative..
  8. Web site: Inside the Mind of US-Russian Spy Peter Debbins . 2023-04-09 . spyscape.com . en . August 9, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220809161742/https://spyscape.com/article/inside-the-mind-of-us-russian-spy-peter-debbins . live .
  9. Web site: Charters . Justen . 2020-08-22 . Investigating the U.S. Special Forces Vet Charged With Spying for Russia . 2023-04-09 . Strike Source . en-US . September 24, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220924185533/https://strikesource.com/2020/08/22/investigating-the-u-s-special-forces-vet-charged-with-spying-for-russia/ . live .
  10. Web site: Former U.S. Green Beret Accused of Spying for Russia Wanted to Build Strategic Training Center in Armenia; U.S. Embassy Pleads Ignorance . 2023-04-09 . Hetq.am . September 6, 2020 . en . April 10, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230410121204/https://hetq.am/en/article/121229 . live .
  11. Web site: Nagorno Karabakh conflict discussed at Institute of World Politics, Washington . 2023-04-08 . armenpress.am . en . April 20, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160420131342/http://armenpress.am/eng/news/844131/ . live .
  12. Former Army Special Forces Officer Charged in Russian Espionage Conspiracy . August 21, 2020 . A Gainesville, Virginia, man was arrested today for conspiring with Russian intelligence operatives to provide them with United States national defense information. . . Office of Public Affairs . https://archive.today/20200821231951/https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-army-special-forces-officer-charged-russian-espionage-conspiracy . August 21, 2020 . live.
  13. News: US special forces veteran charged with spying for Moscow . August 22, 2020 . . November 17, 2020 . November 22, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201122060822/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/22/us-special-forces-veteran-charged-with-spying-for-moscow . live .
  14. News: Weiner . Rachel . Former Army Green Beret admits conspiring to spy for Russia . November 18, 2020 . The Washington Post . November 18, 2020 . November 19, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201119023757/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/green-beret-spy-russia/2020/11/18/a36d7e56-290e-11eb-92b7-6ef17b3fe3b4_story.html . live .
  15. News: Former Army Green Beret jailed for 15 years for spying for Russia . Dunleavy . Jerry . May 14, 2021 . https://archive.today/20210514222641/https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/former-army-green-beret-jailed-15-years-spying-russia . May 14, 2021 . live.
  16. News: Jackman . Tom . Rachel . Weiner . Army captain who spied for Russia sentenced to 15 years in prison . The Washington Post . May 14, 2021 . June 4, 2021 . May 15, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210515175318/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/peter-debbins-russia-spy-prison/2021/05/14/6aabc1d0-af5b-11eb-b476-c3b287e52a01_story.html . live .
  17. Web site: Inmate Locator . 2023-06-06 . www.bop.gov.

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