“I’ve known Zhou since he was a student at the institute. He’s one of the best agents I ever trained, and I’d like him to work with me on this case. I’m sure he’s motivated to prove his innocence.”
“I agree. Until this is solved we can’t assign him to his usual duties anyway.”
Sun smiled. “Thanks, Ambassador. This is a huge challenge, compared to what I was doing at the institute. It could even be the biggest assignment of my career.”
The next day, Sun checked into the embassy residence and began reviewing the files with Zhou. They started by investigating Senator Thompson’s relationships.
“I think we can eliminate the senator’s family, since they had nothing to gain from his death,” Zhou said.
“I agree, Zhou. But we do need to interview his staff before they scatter after finding new jobs. They might have information on possible suspects.”
“We’ll need help. The senator had a very large staff. I suggest using the private investigators employed by the embassy’s law firm. Most of them are former federal law enforcement and are skilled interviewers.”
“Okay, instruct them to interview those who are willing, and to do it quietly. Tell them compensation is authorized for worthwhile information. Emphasize information on possible enemies, confrontations, and unusual incidents relating to the senator or his staff. I’ve developed a spreadsheet format for the collection of the information. It will allow us to compile and sort the information quickly.”
After a week of data collection and analysis, Sun and Zhou met to review the results.
“It seems that the senator had a lot of enemies, Sun.”
“Yes, but one name is at the top of the list: George Solomon. I know him well. He’s known to be an enemy of our government. I could definitely see him being behind a plot to destroy our relationship with the American government.”
“There’s also an incident that needs investigation. Carla Allen, the senator’s personal aide and alleged girlfriend, was stricken with a serious illness the same day the senator died. She’s recovering from a severe bacterial infection and hasn’t been interviewed.”
“Yes, I saw that. I’ve contacted the family to see if they’ll let us talk to her. I convinced them that we might be able to identify the cause of their daughter’s illness. A meeting’s been arranged for tomorrow morning at her parent’s house. I’ve also arranged for a local doctor who’s an expert in bacterial infections to examine her and a composite sketch artist in case Ms. Allen can describe a possible suspect.”
Sun arrived for the meeting with Carla Allen the next day and began asking her questions.
“Do you recall the day the senator died, Ms. Allen?”
“I’ll never forget it. It was a horrible day. I’d gone to a funeral with the senator that morning, and afterward we attended a campaign event. Then he dropped me off at my apartment building and went home. I was walking through the lobby to get my mail when I was knocked down by this foreign guy who was in a hurry to get to an appointment. That was the same day I got sick, and I haven’t felt well since.”
“Has the cause of your illness been identified?”
“No. My doctors said it’s a bacterial infection like none they’ve seen before. It included several bacterial strains that shouldn’t exist together. It’s almost as if I’d been poisoned, but the only thing I had to eat that day was my energy bars and bottled water.”
“How long after being knocked down did you become ill?”
“It was less than an hour later.”
“When you fell, Ms. Allen, did you feel any pain in your thigh or legs?”
Carla hesitated. “You know I thought I did, but I assumed I just fell on my mailbox key since I’d just picked up my mail.”
“I think it’s possible you may have been poisoned by the man who knocked you down. He might’ve used a small hypodermic needle to inject you with a toxin.”
“Why would he do that?”
“I’m not sure. Do you remember what he looked like?”
“He was kind of cute, with dark brown hair and green eyes, and he was over six feet tall. He also had an accent.”
“What type of accent?”
“I’m not sure, but he sounded like that Russian president who visited the White House a couple of months ago. I was introduced to him by the senator.”
“Would you mind if we arranged to have you examined at no cost? We’d also need you to provide our artist with a description of the man who knocked you down.”
“I don’t mind, but could we do it here? I don’t feel well enough to leave the house yet.”
“Certainly. I’ll arrange it for later today if that’s okay.”
“That’s fine. I’m not going anywhere.”
When Sun finished his interview, he immediately arranged for a doctor and a composite sketch artist to come to the house. When they arrived, he instructed them on what he needed and then left for the embassy.
Later that afternoon Sun received an email from the doctor with an attached medical examination report. The report identified a small puncture wound on the back of Carla’s upper right thigh that was surrounded by necrotic tissue. Her blood and urine samples both indicated a massive bacterial infection. The conclusion was that Carla Allen was intentionally injected with a toxin that had caused her symptoms.
Sun also received an email from the sketch artist. It included an attached composite sketch that Carla had verified as an excellent representation of the suspect. He downloaded the sketch, printed it, and showed it to Zhou to see if he recognized the suspect.
“The face looks familiar, but I can’t say I know him.”
“Those Caucasians all look alike to me as well,” Sun said, as they both laughed. “Relax, Zhou. Nobody believes you killed the American senator, not even the American government.”
Sun gave a file with the digitized sketch of the suspect to the embassy’s data-processing center. He ordered it to be run through their intelligence, criminal, and military databases and to call him immediately if they found anything. Both Sun and Zhou were leaving the embassy to go to dinner when they got a call that there was a match. They hurried back to the data-processing center where the technician had already printed the file on Dimitri Vasin. There you are. Let’s see what you’re all about, Sun said to himself.
“This is very interesting, Zhou. It appears that Dimitri Vasin was an American intelligence operative in Europe and the Middle East. There’s no information over the past several years, which could mean he changed jobs. My guess is that he’s now working as a private contractor. The senator was too high a profile target for any domestic or foreign intelligence agency to risk his removal. There’s no apparent connection to George Solomon, but we may not need that.”
“We now have the proof that shows I’m innocent, Sun. We need to show this to the Americans.”
“No, we don’t share results of our intelligence with anyone. It would provide information on our capabilities. It’s not really evidence, anyway.”
“I don’t understand. This is proof that this man killed the senator?”
“No, Zhou. It’s at most circumstantial evidence that he may have attacked the senator’s aide and made her ill. It could easily be disputed in an American court of law.”
The next afternoon, Sun Yu briefed the ambassador on what they’d found.
“Very good work as always, Sun. But how are you going to find this Dimitri?”
“His current address isn’t listed in our databases, which I anticipated based on the work he does. We do know that he has no family anywhere, since they were all killed in Grozny during the Chechen wars. I believe a man like this would want to blend in and feel comfortable in his surroundings. He’ll probably be living with friends in one of the Russian communities in the US.”
“There are a number of such communities, Sun. We don’t have time to search them all.”
“We shouldn’t have to, Ambassador. Last night I contacted a friend in
Russian intelligence for information on who sponsored Vasin’s immigration to the US and their location. Dimitri Vasin was sponsored in 2005 by Antonina Chubais from Brighton Beach, in Brooklyn. Brighton Beach has a large Russian ethnic population and is exactly the type of place Dimitri would reside. I suggest we start our search there.”
“Okay, Sun, I want you and Zhou to develop a plan for the search that doesn’t put any of our agents or anyone else in danger, nor draw any attention to the embassy.”
Sun met with Zhou after the meeting to discuss how they could find Dimitri and still meet the ambassador’s mandate for safety and anonymity.
“Finding Dimitri Vasin in a large, tight-knit Russian community in Brooklyn would be difficult at best for any outsider,” Sun said. “For a Chinese foreign national, it will be almost impossible and dangerous. The Russian Bratva are very active in Brighton Beach. Based on his background, it’s likely that Dimitri is either a member of or associated with the Bratva in some manner. If he was involved in the murder of Senator Thompson, he’ll also be very cautious. That will make finding him even more difficult and dangerous.”
“How can we do the necessary surveillance and still meet the ambassador’s requirements?”
“I have an idea, Zhou. Meet me at my apartment tonight at nine. There’s a movie we need to watch.”
Zhou seemed puzzled. “Why do we need to watch a movie?”
“Because it shows how we can safely find Dimitri in Brighton Beach.”
Zhou showed up at nine as ordered, and they both watched a recent historical drama that depicted how the United States had gotten some American diplomats out of Iran during the Iran hostage crisis. After the movie ended, Sun asked Zhou what he thought.
“It’s a very good movie, Sun, but how does it help us?”
“Did you see how the Americans were smuggled out of Tehran by pretending to be part of a movie crew? We can do the same thing in reverse.”
“I don’t understand.”
“We can reverse the plan from the movie. Our investigators will pretend to be part of a real Chinese film crew shooting a documentary in Brighton Beach. The documentary will be about the Russian ethnic culture in the Brighton Beach community. We’ll do interviews with members of the local population that suffered oppression in Russia and immigrated to America for a new life. Our documentary will focus on their new lives. During the production, we’ll hire some of the locals to arrange interviews with Russian immigrants and find locations for filming. We’ll also get some information from them in the process. Hopefully information about Dimitri Vasin.”
Zhou smiled. “You’re a genius, Sun. It could work, but we’ll need to get the ambassador involved to find a film crew and arrange for the filming in Brighton Beach.”
“I briefed the ambassador before you got here. He’s agreed to find the film crew and get the required permits for the filming. I had to assure him that none of the Chinese or Americans involved in this plan will be harmed in any way. It helped that the ambassador is a film buff.”
“How hard is it to get permission for filming a documentary in New York?” Zhou asked.
“Dozens of documentaries and TV shows are made in the city annually. The city government actively encourages it as a great source of revenue and publicity.”
“All I want is a confession from this Dimitri on his involvement in framing me. Hopefully, he’ll also confess to the murder of Senator Thompson?”
“The ambassador said he doesn’t care about the murder or who did it, Zhou. That’s America’s problem. He only wants proof that you and the embassy had no involvement. That’ll have to be enough.”
“I understand. It’ll be enough for me.”
“Good, I’m meeting with the ambassador tomorrow morning to discuss the plan.”
The next morning, Sun arrived at the ambassador’s office.
“Good morning, Sun. I’ve arranged for a Chinese film crew with experience in documentaries. They’ll be in New York after I arrange for the permits.”
“Will the permits be a problem?”
“I doubt it. I’ve met the mayor and I’m certain she’ll see this as a political opportunity. The Chinese community in New York City is a large component of her political base. A generous donation from the Chinese government to the New York City Mayor’s Fund will also help. I’ll arrange it. What will your role be in this production?”
“I’ll be the producer for the documentary. I speak excellent English and Russian and have experience with the making of films and videos.”
“That’s fine, Sun. But don’t let it go to your head. You’re an intelligence agent first and a producer second. Is that clear?”
“Yes.”
A few days later the film crew arrived and began walking through Brighton Beach to find filming locations and hire locals to support the interview and filming process. All local hires were screened at the mayor’s insistence by the New York Police Department to make sure they had no ties to organized crime. The mayor also assigned a dozen of New York’s finest to ensure that the Chinese film crew was safe and avoided any trouble with the locals.
That didn’t seem to be an issue, since the locals were ecstatic, based on the anticipated influx of tourists and revenue. Local merchants were salivating over the crowds that would assemble when the filming began. The potential for jobs in a community that desperately needed them was a boost for morale, as was the possibility of the locals getting their fifteen minutes of fame.
12
Kim and Cai were happy that the weekend training sessions were over. They’d have more time to spend with each other before the probing of the targets in the US would begin. Both noticed that the project was taking a toll on Shen. In addition to school, he was managing the training sessions and the plan for the attack.
The two Korean intelligence agents, whom Cai had nicknamed Tweedledum and Tweedledee, were monitoring Shen’s activities. They reported that Shen had met with five groups of four hackers each, all students from HIT, Harbin University of Science and Technology, Harbin Engineering University, and Heilongjiang University. Kim thought that there had to be more than twenty hackers based on the size of the target population that they’d been briefed on.
Kim asked Shen to set up a meeting at the Shangri La that evening with their girlfriends.
“We should celebrate the completion of the training, Shen. It’ll be fun.”
“Yeah, I could use a little fun and relaxation right now. I’ll arrange for the rooms.”
Kim called Cai.
“We have a date at the Shangri La tonight, Cai. Do you want to go?” Kim asked.
“Do you realize that this is the third time we’re going to the Shangri La and you’ve yet to ask me first?”
“The first time doesn’t count. I hadn’t met you yet,” Kim replied.
“Yes, but not the last two. I hope you’re not taking me for granted.”
“Never. You know I love you. So can you go?”
“I wouldn’t miss it. Does a room come with the offer?”
“Yes, Shen is setting it up. Is that okay?”
“Yes. I just wanted to know what to bring with me.”
“Just bring yourself. You won’t need any clothes in the room, except maybe the hotel bathrobe.”
Cai laughed. “That’s not why I asked. I need to know if I have to bring my valuables so my roommate’s boyfriend doesn’t steal anything.”
“Maybe I should have Tweedledum and Tweedledee talk with him.”
“No, please don’t. I can handle it.”
“Okay, Cai. Do you want me to meet you at your place or at the Shangri La?”
“I’ll meet you at the pub. It’s easier that way.”
“Are you trying to protect me from your roommate’s boyfriend? I can take care of myself.”
“I know that. Actually, I’m protecting him from you so you don’t get deported.”
“Okay, I’ll see you at the hotel.”
Kim’s taxi got
to the hotel a few seconds before Cai’s, and they walked into the pub together while holding hands. Shen and Lian were sitting at a table with four empty glasses.
“Looks like you’ve been here a while, Shen.”
“We have. You need to catch up.”
Shen ordered another round for Lian and himself.
“This was a great idea, Kim. I really needed to have some fun time.”
“You look exhausted, Shen. What’s wearing you out like this?”
“This project requires a lot more work than I anticipated, Kim.”
“What happened? Were additional targets added or more hackers recruited?”
“Neither. The duration of the attack was decreased, which means the planning got more complex. I’m totally confused about the goals of this project, but nobody seems to care. Someone knows what’s going on, but it isn’t me.”
Kim hesitated as he thought about what Shen just said. He decided to share his doubts and said, “I also have a problem understanding the goals. Can you tell me how many hackers are involved in the project?”
“No one is supposed to know that except myself and Sean, my contact. I already told Lian, so I guess I can tell you as well. There are twenty hackers from several Harbin universities. I report to Sean via a phone he gave to me at the beginning of the project.”
“Do you have any idea who Sean is and who’s funding this project? It must be enormously expensive.”
“I think Sean’s an American, Kim. I have no clue as to who’s providing the funding. He must be very rich the way he’s been throwing money around.”
“What’s his role in all of this, Shen?”
“I’m not sure. I met with him initially when he first contacted me at HIT several months ago about a research project. He said that it required about twenty Harbin students who were experienced hackers. Sean visits Harbin periodically to identify and address any issues. All our meetings were held at a suite I’d reserve here.”
“Were they scheduled meetings or were they random?”
“Definitely random. He’d just reserve a room for himself at the Shangri La and then notify me when he wanted to meet. I think he did that so I couldn’t prepare for our meetings.”
Cyber Countdown Page 17