29 November 2003.


November 25, 2003

I found the brief article about the FBI visit to Cryptome interesting, in that your site had only days earlier posted a link to a story about former FBI agent Lok Thye Lau. The story you ran carried links to documents that the government determined were "classified" after those documents had been in the public record for some three weeks.

Although I'm not certain why you received a visit from agents, at the very least I thought you would find it interesting that about the same time you were called upon, a civil rights group and lawyers for Lau also were contacted by the government concerning the "classified" documents.

Below are links to the stories I've written on the subject, as well as links to other media coverage of the Lau case. You may already be aware of all this, but in the event you are not, it might factor into your analysis of why you received a visit, particularly given the lack of response to your FOIA request.

Sincerely,

Bill Conroy

______________

San Antonio Business Journal stories:

• LULAC seeks sanctions against government in Lau spy case
http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/11/10/story3.html

• Lawyers, civil rights group claim government turning up the heat in Lau spy
case:
http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/10/20/daily42.html

• Media's computers are on FBI's radar screen in Lau spy case:
http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/10/20/daily11.html

(AP's follow to our story above:)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,1282,-3297228,00.html

• Judge orders previously public court records sealed in case of former FBI
agent:
http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/10/13/daily12.html

• Former federal agents’ spy story opens Pandora’s box for FBI:
http://sanantonio.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2003/10/13/story1.html

__________

OTHER MEDIA LINKS ON SUBJECT

FBI spy revelation could be a thread that unravels the Bureau
http://www.commondreams.org/views03/1030-10.htm

Judge redacts records in FBI spying case, but won't issue deletion order
http://www.rcfp.org/news/2003/1023lauvas.html

Court nixes FBI bid to purge unspecified computers
http://www.cfac.org/#anchor5191639

Federal judge seals records alleging FBI's involvement in international spy
business
http://foi.missouri.edu/evolvingissues/fedjudge.html

Court nixes FBI bid to purge unspecified computers
http://www.cfac.org/#anchor5191639

The spy who was left out in the cold, By Gary Webb
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/EK07Ad03.html

Patriot Acts
http://newsreview.com/issues/sacto/2003-11-20/cover.asp

BIGLEFTOUTSIDE BLURB
http://www.bigleftoutside.com/archives/000197.php