Photo: ALEX WROBLEWSKI / AFP / Getty Images
The FBI is offering a $200,000 reward for information leading to the capture of Monica Elfriede Witt, a former U.S. Air Force counterintelligence specialist. Witt, who defected to Iran in 2013, is accused of providing national defense information to the Iranian government. She was indicted by a federal grand jury in February 2019 on charges of espionage.
According to the FBI, Witt, 47, allegedly betrayed her oath to the Constitution by defecting to Iran and supplying the regime with sensitive information. Her actions reportedly benefited the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a group designated as a foreign terrorist organization in 2019. Witt's defection is believed to have endangered U.S. personnel and their families.
Witt served in the Air Force from 1997 to 2008 and later worked as a Defense Department contractor until 2010. Her roles provided her access to classified national security information, including the identities of undercover U.S. intelligence personnel. Authorities allege that Witt conducted research for Iranian intelligence, helping them target her former U.S. colleagues.
The FBI's renewed focus on Witt's case comes amid ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, which have been at war since February 28. The FBI believes someone may have information about Witt's whereabouts during this critical time in Iran's history.
Witt is described as a white woman, 5 feet 10 inches tall, with brown hair and brown eyes. She is also known by the aliases Fatemah Zahra and Narges Witt. Anyone with information is urged to contact the FBI.