Monica Witt | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Witt photographed c. 2000 | |
| Born | 8 April 1979 El Paso, Texas, US |
| Other names |
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| Citizenship | United States |
| Alma mater | |
| Military career | |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Years | 1997–2008 |
| Rank | Technical sergeant |
| Conflicts | 2003 invasion of Iraq |
| Awards | Air Medal |
Monica Elfriede Witt (born 8 April 1979) is a former United States Air Force technical sergeant and defense contractor who defected to Iran in 2013. She is a fugitive from a United States Department of Justice indictment for espionage against the United States since 2018.
Born in Texas, Witt enlisted in the US Air Force in 1997 as a linguist and studied the Persian language at the Defense Language Institute before becoming an Airborne Cryptologic Language Analyst. She was then assigned to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations as an enlisted counterintelligence special agent until separating from the Air Force in 2008. She continued working in intelligence as a military contractor until 2010.
After her 2012 conversion to Islam in Iran, Witt became increasingly focused on the religion and the region. Her master's degree capstone presentation lauded them both, and she was soon affiliated with Marzieh Hashemi, a suspected Iranian intelligence operative. With Hashemi's assistance, Witt defected to Iran in 2013 and provided the Islamic republic with assistance and intelligence stemming from her work for and with the US government.