Joseph Sydney Petersen Jr., 40, a research analyst engaged in secret Government work since 1941, was fired on Oct. 1. One night last week, talking long-distance with an aunt in New Orleans, he said he was expecting a "big promotion." Next day he was arrested by the FBI.
Petersen was charged with obtaining secret documentsbetween March 1, 1948 and Dec. 31, 1952"to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of a foreign nation." The foreign nation: France. U.S. agents said that secrets passed by Petersen to French government agents were later stolen in Paris by the Baranes spy group...