Grim Shadow of the Cold War

PHILADELPHIA: Aldrich Ames may soon have a new cell mate. On Friday, Robert Lipka (Soviet codename "Rook"), a former employee of the secretive National Security Agency was arrested on charges of spying for the Soviet Union. Oleg Kalugin, former head of the KGB's foreign counter intelligence service described Lipka in his book, 'First Directorate', calling Lipka's material "significant." During the 60's and 70's, Lipka allegedly photographed and stole classified documents and then sold them to Soviet agents. He apparently quit because he wasn't paid highly enough. TIME'S Douglas Waller says the case "will not produce the same stir as the Ames case. Whatever Lipka gave the Soviets is now long out of date." This is not likely to encourage leniency on the part of the U.S. Government, Waller notes. "Lipka could get a fairly stiff sentence. Arrested spies are likely to plead guilty to avoid public trials which make secret methodologies and sources a matter of public record."