By Penta Wilson
She would always be “the other Anna,” her alleged criminal misdeeds and her personal life not quite the measure of the Anna who came before her.
But Anna Fermanova would nonetheless be linked to Anna Chapman, for reasons beyond given names.
Ms. Chapman was one of 10 members of a Russian spy ring brought down by the Federal Bureau of Investigation last year. Her nights on the town and alluring photographs on Facebook enthralled the media and evoked a character out of a James Bond movie.
Ms. Fermanova was arrested in July 2010, shortly after Ms. Chapman was, for trying to smuggle night-vision weapon scopes to Russia. Ms. Fermanova, who had a similar predilection for posting stunning pictures on Facebook, became a news media darling herself, inspiring headlines like, “Anna Fermanova Is America’s New Sexy Russian Outlaw.”
But that is where the two cases diverge. Ms. Chapman and her comrades pleaded guilty to conspiracy to act as unregistered agents and were returned to Russia less than two weeks after their arrest as part of a prisoner swap, the likes of which have not been seen since the cold war. They were hailed as heroes in Russia, where Ms. Chapman began hosting a weekly television program.
Ms. Fermanova, 25, also pleaded guilty, but the prosecution and her lawyers agreed that she was not a spy. Her defense lawyer, Scott H. Palmer, said that being foolish was more like it.
Ms. Fermanova was before a Federal District Court judge in Brooklyn on Monday, begging for leniency in a sentencing hearing.
Mr. Palmer said his client, with the help of her soon-to-be ex-husband, bought the scopes legally in the United States and tried to sell them illegally to men in Russia who, she believed, were hunters. Ms. Fermanova has pleaded guilty to the unlicensed export of an item on the United States Munitions List, military defense items subject to government control.
“I just wanted to say that I was truly sorry for what I did,” Ms. Fermanova said, wiping away tears. “I completely realize it was a really foolish act. It was a means to make a little extra cash.”
Mr. Palmer argued for a sentence of probation because, he said, Ms. Fermanova, who was born in Latvia but is a United States citizen living in Texas, did not know that the items could have slipped into the wrong hands. The recommended sentence in such a case is 46 months in prison.
“As far as she is concerned, the hunters that were buying them were rich,” Mr. Palmer said.
The judge, Carol Bagley Amon, seemed less than sympathetic to the argument. “The court recognizes that these items are not as dangerous as other items on the list,” she said. But, she said, “they could have easily gotten out of the hands of hunters into another stream of commerce.”
“It is the court’s view,” the judge added, “that deporting munitions, particularly something such as night vision goggles — this is a very serious offense. The sentence imposed has to promote a respect for the law.”
The prosecutor, Seth DuCharme, also recommended a shorter sentence, though not because the government believed the crime was not serious. Ms. Fermanova had cooperated with the government, Judge Amon said.
Judge Amon ordered a sentence of four months in federal prison followed by three years of probation, including four months of being subject to home arrest. She also ordered a $1,000 fine.
Ms. Fermanova must surrender by Dec. 5.
(According to nytimes)
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Articles Source: Anna Fermanova: Sexy Russian Spy Sentenced Four Months in Federal Prison
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