Is there really not enough of a threat from foreign spying and espionage that the FBI needs to run a sting operation in order to fabricate an espionage conviction?

Such was the case of former U.S. Navy sailer Robert Hoffman, who unfortunately through his own greed, and probably a little bit of lust, fell for the FBI’s espionage sting operation, which included tempting Hoffman with a well-endowed, half-dressed fake Russian “spy” presenting herself to Hoffman and convincing him to spy for Mother Russia.

While national news headlines in the U.S. today paint the picture of a domestic spy attempting to provide classified information to the Russians – the reality is in stark contrast.

The truth is that the FBI saw a retired U.S. sailor as an ideal target for entrapment. They sent in an exotic-looking undercover female agent to entice Hoffman into selling off documents that he had access to in the course of his normal duties as a cryptologist with the Navy.









The Entrapment of Robert Hoffman

Robert Patrick Hoffman II served honorably for 20 years for the Navy while stationed in Florida, Pearl Harbor, and finally Virginia. He earned achievements, commendations and medals for his work as a cryptologic technician.

He finally retired in 2011, and made the mistake of starting to travel overseas. He made the mistake of visiting a club in Belarus and taking a liking to the women there.

He made the mistake of bragging about his repeated international trips to Belarus to pursue women, calling it a “Man-cation”. In the spring of 2012, the FBI somehow learned of his personal travels and his love of women. They found his personal ad on Craigslist, and launched their entrapment of Robert by having a female agent respond to his personal ad.

FBI Use of Female Agents

It is important to keep in mind that up until this point in his life – before the FBI became involved – Hoffman had never entertained the prospect of espionage in his life. In fact, even after the trial was said and done and he was sentenced to 30 years in prison – there was absolutely no evidence that he had done anything wrong before the FBI started approaching him and convincing him to spy.

First, the FBI sent in an undercover female operative named “Tracy Tea” to court Hoffman and warm him up to the idea of opening up to new, sexy female contacts.

She dated him, exchanged dozens of emails with him, and got him to speak openly about his career with the Navy and got him to boast about his top secret security clearance.

Next, the FBI turned the heat up a notch by sending in a female agent – dressed in a short black skirt, a low-cut blouse, and 3-inch heels. She presented herself as a Russian agent who wanted to give him a letter from a “friend” in Moscow – an alleged handler named “Vladimir” (the FBI couldn’t really come up with a more original name) – who Hoffman was to contact for more information.

Hoffman Turns Himself In

Another funny part of the ordeal was that Hoffman suspected all along that the whore the FBI sent to his door, and the cliche cloak-and-dagger operation going on with Vladimir, could very well be part of a setup. But, he wrote in his diary that Olga’s beauty and his money problems convinced him that the risks were worth it, and he felt he had little to lose.

“My thought that Vladimir is an idiot, or new at this espionage thing, is growing well on the mound of evidence he provides me. Or this whole thing could be a setup against me and they suck at it.”

Vladimir convinced Hoffman to make several drops of information in the local area, which he did based on his memory of information during his work with the Navy.

Ironically, the FBI never actually “busted” Hoffman. He turned himself in and offered to help the FBI catch the Russian spy ring. On October 31, 2012, he walked into the Norfolk FBI field office and told them he was communicating with a Russian spy, and offered to help the agency trap the man.