FBI paid Australian terrorist $561,000 for secrets on al-Qaeda
Jack Roche, jailed for plotting to bomb Canberra's Israeli Embassy, was recruited by the FBI and paid $561,000 for al-Qaeda evidence.
Jack Roche was recruited by the FBI while serving his prison sentence in Perth. Between 2005 and 2015, he was interviewed up to 10 times about top al-Qaeda leaders including Osama Bin Laden, Khaled Sheikh Mohammed, and Encep Nurjaman.
Roche had been jailed in 2004 for plotting to blow up Israel's embassy in Canberra. The FBI paid him $561,000 because he had direct access to al-Qaeda leadership.
Secret interviews began in December 2005 while still in jail and continued after his 2007 release. The FBI paid his rent and living costs when he struggled to find work.
Payments were approved at the highest level in Washington. Roche has since died, and his testimony is now at the centre of a Guantanamo Bay trial where the defence seeks to suppress it as hearsay.
- $561,000 paid between 2005 and 2015
- Payment amount
- Up to 10 times over 10 years
- Interview frequency
- Perth, Australia
- Prison location
- December 2005 while still in jail
- First interview
Why it mattersIt reveals how Western intelligence agencies recruit prisoners with insider knowledge of terror networks, and raises questions about the reliability of paid informant testimony in major prosecutions.
Corroborated by7news.com.au
