Roanoke Times Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc. DATE: THURSDAY, April 21, 1994 TAG: 9404210205 SECTION: NATIONAL/INT PAGE: A-12 EDITION: METRO SOURCE: Associated Press DATELINE: ALEXANDRIA LENGTH: Short
``I never worked for the Soviets,'' Rosario Ames said Tuesday during an hour-long interview in her jail cell.
Aldrich ``Rick'' Ames and his 41-year-old wife were arrested Feb. 21 on espionage conspiracy charges. The FBI said Ames, a 31-year CIA veteran, was paid $2.5 million since 1985 by the Soviet Union and later the Russians to spy for them.
``I have no idea about it. I have very little knowledge of Rick's work or his superiors,'' Ames said.
She also challenged the government's assertion that she was a paid source for the CIA. ``I was never interviewed, officially hired or met anybody else from the CIA,'' she said.
In the interview, published Wednesday and conducted with her attorney present, Ames told of struggling with ``anger, resentment and bitterness'' toward her 52-year-old husband, feelings that have since settled into ``great sadness and bewilderment.''
She declined to comment on excerpts from government wiretaps that indicate she cautioned her husband against carelessness in carrying sensitive documents or cash.