In Virginia's Fairfax County, Robbing Banks for the CIA

Bloomberg Businessweek - By Tom Schoenberg,  April 18, 2013

“If I tell you, you’re not going to believe me,” Torres said. He was crying as he told them an incredible story about being recruited by the Defense Intelligence Agency to participate in a secret operation testing the security of Washington-area banks. He said he’d been assigned to rob a half-dozen banks over four days. And he told them about Theo, the man who hired him and gave all the orders—even though Torres had never met him.

Neither Villegas nor any of the other robbery participants were ever charged. In October state prosecutors dropped the case against Torres without explanation. Vickery said it was because police were convinced Torres was tricked. The CIA and federal prosecutors in Virginia declined to comment. Torres agreed to be called as a witness against Brady, though he may not get to testify. On Jan. 29, Brady reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors. Under the agreement, he pled guilty to one count of using a forged federal judge’s signature. The government agreed in exchange to drop the bank robbery and impersonation charges. His lawyers argued he suffered from mental illnesses that made him unable to form the intent to commit the crimes he was charged with. Brady has PTSD, paranoid schizophrenia, and schizotypal personality disorder, according to the doctor hired by his lawyers. After conducting an additional mental exam, the government’s doctor diagnosed Brady with a delusional disorder that could have posed problems during the bank robbery trial.

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