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facts about jerry whitworth.html

25 Facts About Jerry Whitworth

facts about jerry whitworth.html1.

Jerry Alfred Whitworth was born on August 10,1939 and was sentenced to 365 years for his part in the Walker family spy ring, which, at the time of Whitworth's arrest, US authorities described as "the most damaging espionage ring uncovered in the United States in three decades".

2.

Jerry Whitworth's father left his mother and moved to California before he was one year old.

3.

Jerry Whitworth's mother had died shortly afterwards, so his maternal grandparents and one uncle were awarded guardianship.

4.

In September 1956, at the age of 17, Jerry Whitworth joined the Naval Reserve at Fort Smith, Arkansas.

5.

Jerry Whitworth was advanced to storekeeper third class in June 1959.

6.

Jerry Whitworth went on active duty at Naval Air Station Alameda in September 1962.

7.

Jerry Whitworth used his first weekend pass from Alameda to go to Mendota, where he learned his father resided, not having seen him since infancy.

8.

Jerry Whitworth was transferred to Naval Air Station Los Alamitos in January 1965 where he decided to convert from storekeeper to radioman.

9.

Jerry Whitworth graduated from radioman A school at United States Naval Training Center Bainbridge in 1966 and spent a year with Tactical Air Command squadron TACRon 12.

10.

Jerry Whitworth was advanced to radioman second class in April 1967 and returned to school at Naval Training Center San Diego.

11.

Jerry Whitworth was then ordered to attend a satellite communications school at Naval Training Center San Diego, where he graduated and did well enough to be assigned a teaching position at the same school.

12.

Jerry Whitworth had gained a reputation for being dedicated to his Navy work, but others noticed an overwhelming effort in him to try and fit in.

13.

Jerry Whitworth left San Diego in February 1973 to work at the communications center on Diego Garcia, which served as the primary communications relay facility for reconnaissance aircraft, surveillance satellites, and National Security Agency listening operations in and around the Indian Ocean.

14.

Jerry Whitworth returned to Diego Garcia as a satellite communications specialist in March 1975, where he was awarded the Navy Achievement Medal for his performance as the petty-officer-in-charge of the satellite communications division and technical control facility.

15.

Jerry Whitworth agreed to help John Walker in getting highly classified communications data in 1973; from then until his retirement in 1983, his work for the navy involved encrypted communications and required security clearance.

16.

Jerry Whitworth married for the first time in 1967 but his wife left him within a year.

17.

Jerry Whitworth committed suicide in 1974 but he did not learn this until around 1980.

18.

Jerry Whitworth married a second time in 1976, to a woman 15 years his junior, and was still married to her at the time of his arrest.

19.

Less than six months after he retired from the Navy, Jerry Whitworth seemed to try to get out of espionage.

20.

Jerry Whitworth said that he had been spying for several years, passing secret cryptographic lists for military communications.

21.

Jerry Whitworth said that there were at least three other people in his spy ring and offered to cooperate with the authorities provided he received immunity.

22.

Jerry Whitworth wrote again in late May 1984, again asking for immunity and saying that the spy ring had been operating for more than 20 years.

23.

Jerry Whitworth's retirement was formalized by the Navy on October 31,1983.

24.

Jerry Whitworth then attended school to become a stockbroker, and had taken his stockbroker's exam in 1985.

25.

Jerry Whitworth ended up receiving the harshest punishment of the spy quartet, being fined $410,000 and sentenced to 365 years imprisonment.