WASHINGTON — The son of a notorious CIA double-agent jailed in 1997 for spying for Russia has also pleaded guilty to espionage charges, the US Department of Justice said.
Nathaniel Nicholson, 25, appeared Thursday before District Judge Anna Brown and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government and conspiracy to commit money laundering, a statement said.
Harold Nicholson, 58, the highest-ranking CIA officer ever convicted of spying, was jailed in 1997 and is serving a 23-year prison sentence. He must also answer the latest conspiracy charges but has pleaded not guilty.
The younger Nicholson faces more than 20 years in jail for crimes that date back to 2006-2008.
Prosecutors at the trial in Portland, Orgegon said the younger Nicholson had been recruited and trained by his father to travel the globe to collect on past spying debts and channel information to foreign agents.
Brown set a date for a sentencing hearing on January 25, 2010.
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