Editing Jonathan Pollard (section)

==Capture==
Pollard's espionage was nearly revealed in 1984 when a department chief noted a report on Soviet military equipment and questioned why it was germane to the office. Pollard, to whom the report was traced, was asked about it, and he replied that he had been working on terrorist networks, which was accepted as valid. In 1985, a co-worker anonymously reported Pollard's removal of classified material from the NIC. The coworker noted that Pollard did not seem to be taking the material to any known appropriate destination, such as other intelligence agencies in the area. Although Pollard was authorized to transport documents and the coworker said the documents were wrapped properly, it appeared unusual that Pollard would be transporting documents on a Friday afternoon when there was little happening and people seemed to be focused on an upcoming long weekend. Ultimately, that report was not acted upon as it was felt it occurred within business hours and Pollard had business being in other offices.
In another instance Pollard's direct superior, having to complete extra work at the office on a Saturday, had walked by Pollard's desk and noticed unsecured classified material. Taking the initiative to secure it, the supervisor glanced over it and saw it was unrelated to [[antiterrorism]] matters in the [[Caribbean]], with which the section was concerned. Looking at more unrelated documents, the supervisor believed foreign intelligence might be involved, but was unable to determine which nation might be interested.<ref name="trutv.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.trutv.com|title=truTV|work=trutv.com|access-date=August 3, 2015}}</ref>

Pollard was stopped and questioned by FBI agents about a week later while removing classified material from his work premises. He explained that he was taking it to another analyst at a different agency for a consultation. His story was checked and found to be false. Pollard requested a telephone call to his wife to tell her where he was. As the interview was voluntary, the investigators had no choice but to grant the request. During the call to Anne, Pollard used the code word "cactus", signaling that he was in trouble, and that she should remove all classified material from their home. She attempted to do this,<ref>{{cite magazine|url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,963771,00.html|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080408171000/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,963771,00.html|url-status= dead|archive-date= April 8, 2008|title=Espionage Spying Between Friends|date= March 16, 1987|magazine= [[Time (magazine)|Time]]}}</ref> enlisting the help of a neighbor.<ref name="haaretz">{{cite news|last= Oren|first= Amir|url= http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/only-attempt-to-seek-refuge-in-israeli-embassy-incriminated-jonathan-pollard-1.197778 |title= Only attempt to seek refuge in Israeli embassy incriminated Jonathan Pollard|work= Haaretz|date= September 21, 2006 |access-date= July 26, 2012}}</ref>

Pollard later agreed to a search of his home, which found the few documents which Anne had missed. At this time, the FBI decided to cede the case to Pollard's supervisors, since they had uncovered only mishandling of documents, with no proof that Pollard was passing classified information. The case broke wide open a few days later, when Pollard was asked by his superiors to take a polygraph test. Instead, he admitted to passing documents illegally, without mentioning Israel. The FBI again became involved. A brief time later, Pollard's neighbor, a naval officer, became concerned about safeguarding the {{convert|70|lb|adj=on}} suitcase full of highly classified material that Anne had given him, and began telephoning around the military intelligence community asking for advice.<ref name="haaretz" /> He cooperated fully with the investigation and was never charged with any crime.<ref name="damage">{{cite web|title=The Jonathan Jay Pollard Espionage Case: A Damage Assessment|url= https://www.archives.gov/declassification/iscap/pdf/2007-010-doc1.pdf|publisher= archives.gov|access-date=February 19, 2014}}</ref>

After his partial confession, Pollard was surveilled, but not taken into custody. On November 21, 1985, he and his wife tried to gain asylum at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., but they were ordered to leave by Israeli guards. FBI agents arrested Pollard as soon as he left embassy property.<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=196093|title=PM asks for Pollard's release as part of freeze deal|last= Hoffman|first=Gil|date=November 21, 2010|work=[[The Jerusalem Post]]|access-date= November 20, 2011}}</ref> His handler, [[Rafi Eitan]], stated in a 2014 interview that Pollard had been warned that he was uncovered and that he had given him a prearranged signal to leave the United States, but instead Pollard "wandered around for three days with them following him. He had many opportunities to do what I told him and he didn't do it." Eitan claimed that he had given the order to evict Pollard from the embassy.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.629491 |title = Ex-Mossad Handler Blames Pollard for Bungling '85 Escape Plan|newspaper = Haaretz|date = December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=בלי נקיפות מצפון {{!}} עובדה |url=https://www.mako.co.il/tv-ilana_dayan/2015-75230c07c760a410/Article-92ac6ecd0960a41006.htm |website=mako |date=December 1, 2014}}</ref>

After Pollard's arrest, Anne evaded an FBI agent who was following her, met Sella at a restaurant, and told him of her husband's arrest. As a result, three Israeli diplomatic personnel involved in the operation were also informed: [[science attaché]]s [[Yosef Yagur]] and [[Ilan Ravid]], and embassy secretary Irit Erb. [[Lekem|LAKAM]] had not foreseen this turn of events nor crafted escape plans, and they were told to flee immediately. The apartment where the documents stolen by Pollard were kept and copied was cleared out, and all four immediately fled Washington. Sella and his wife took a train to New York and caught a flight to London, Yagur fled to Canada, Erb to Mexico, and Ravid to Miami, from where they caught connecting flights to Israel. All were out of the United States in 24 hours.<ref>{{cite book|last= Thomas|first= Gordon|title= Gideon's Spies: The secret history of the Mossad|publisher= St. Martin's Griffin|year= 2012|isbn= 978-0312552435|url= https://archive.org/details/gideonsspiessecr00gord}}</ref> Anne was arrested the next day, November 22, 1985.<ref>Henderson, ''Pollard: The Spy's Story'' (1988) p. 111.</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4700225,00.html | title=From disposable asset to national hero: The full Pollard spy saga| newspaper=Ynetnews| date=September 14, 2015| last1=Shiffer| first1=Shimon}}</ref>

===Investigation===
Prior to Pollard's plea bargain, the U.S. government began preparing a multi-count criminal indictment against him, which included drug offences and tax fraud along with espionage.<ref name="hersh" /> The government alleged that Pollard used classified documents to unsuccessfully broker an arms deal with the governments of South Africa, [[Argentina]], and [[Taiwan]].<ref name="hersh" /> [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] investigators also determined that Pollard met with three Pakistanis and an Iranian foreigner in an attempt to broker arms in 1985.<ref name="hersh" /> Pollard eventually cooperated with investigators in exchange for a plea agreement for leniency for himself and his wife. Israel said initially that Pollard worked for an unauthorized rogue operation, which they maintained for more than ten years. They finally agreed to cooperate with the investigation in exchange for immunity for the Israelis involved.

When asked to return the stolen material, the Israelis reportedly supplied only a few dozen less sensitive documents.<ref name="o200">[[#refOlive2006|Olive 2006]], pp. 198–201</ref> At the time, the Americans knew that Pollard had passed tens of thousands of documents.

The Israelis created a schedule designed to wear the American investigators down, including many hours per day of commuting in blacked-out buses on rough roads, and frequent switching of buses,<ref name="o200" /> leaving them without adequate time to sleep, and preventing them from sleeping on the commute.<ref name="o200" /> The identity of Pollard's original handler, Sella, was withheld. All questions had to be translated into [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] and answered in Hebrew, and then translated back into English, even though all the parties spoke perfect English.<ref name="o200" /> The Commander Jerry Agee remembers that, even as he departed the airport, airport security informed him that "you will never be coming back here again". After his return to the US, Agee found various items had been stolen from his luggage.<ref name="o200" /> The abuse came not only from the guards and officials, but also the Israeli media.<ref name="o200" />

Sella was eventually indicted on three counts of espionage by a United States court.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/04/us/us-jurors-indict-an-israeli-officer-on-spying-counts.html|title=U.S. Jurors Indict An Israeli Officer On Spying Counts|last=Werner|first=Leslie Maitland|date=March 4, 1987|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=December 26, 2012}}</ref> Israel refused to allow Sella to be interviewed unless he was granted immunity. The United States refused because of Israel's previous failure to cooperate as promised. Israel refused to extradite Sella, instead giving him command of [[Tel Nof Airbase]]. The [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] responded by threatening to cut aid to Israel, at which point Sella voluntarily stepped down to defuse tensions.<ref>[[#refOlive2006|Olive 2006]], p. 212</ref>

During the morning of January 20, 2021, the last half-day of [[First presidency of Donald Trump|Donald Trump's first presidential term]], the [[White House]] announced that [[Donald Trump|Trump]] had granted a full pardon to Sella. The announcement stated that the State of Israel had requested the pardon and had issued a full and unequivocal apology. The announcement also stated that Prime Minister of Israel [[Benjamin Netanyahu]], Israeli ambassador to the United States [[Ron Dermer]], United States ambassador to Israel [[David M. Friedman|David Friedman]] and [[Miriam Adelson]] had endorsed Sella's request for clemency.<ref>(1) {{cite news |date=January 20, 2021 |title=Trump pardons Israeli officer who enlisted spy Pollard |work=The Americas |publisher=[[The Washington Post]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/trump-pardons-israeli-officer-who-enlisted-spy-pollard/2021/01/20/373d73b2-5b09-11eb-a849-6f9423a75ffd_story.html |url-status=dead |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125181242/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/trump-pardons-israeli-officer-who-enlisted-spy-pollard/2021/01/20/373d73b2-5b09-11eb-a849-6f9423a75ffd_story.html |archive-date=January 25, 2021}}<br />(2) {{cite web |date=January 20, 2021 |title=Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency |url=https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grants-clemency-012021/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120171920/https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grants-clemency-012021/ |archive-date=January 20, 2021 |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |via=[[NARA|National Archives]]}}<br />(3) {{cite news |last1=Stimson |first1=Brie |last2=Dorman |first2=Sam |date=January 20, 2021 |title=Trump pardons Steve Bannon, Lil Wayne, dozens of others; also commutes sentences |publisher=[[Fox News]] |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-pardons-steve-bannon-lil-wayne-dozens-of-others-also-commutes-sentences |url-status=dead |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120180235/https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-pardons-steve-bannon-lil-wayne-dozens-of-others-also-commutes-sentences |archive-date=January 20, 2021}}.<br />(4) {{cite news |last1=Talmazan |first1=Yuliya |last2=Elbaum |first2=Rachel |last3=Mhaidli |first3=Sara |title=Full list of Trump's last-minute pardons and commuted sentences |work=[[NBC News]] |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/full-list-trump-s-last-minute-pardons-commuted-sentences-n1254806 |url-status=dead |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120172319/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/full-list-trump-s-last-minute-pardons-commuted-sentences-n1254806 |archive-date=January 20, 2021}}.</ref>