Washington. The US Department of Justice has agreed to discontinue criminal prosecution against Sue Mi Terry, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) analyst and former White House National Security Council official accused of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for South Korea. Under a deferred prosecution agreement, the criminal charges brought against her in July 2024 will be suspended. If Terry complies with the conditions stipulated in the agreement for the next 12 months, the case against her will be dismissed entirely.
The terms of the agreement were outlined in a four-page document filed on Tuesday in the US District Court in Manhattan. The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York said it had decided to defer prosecution but did not provide a detailed explanation for the decision. The document stated that the interests of both the United States and Terry would be best served by postponing prosecution.
The decision comes just weeks before the case was reportedly scheduled to go to trial. The agreement spares Terry the immediate threat of a criminal conviction and potential imprisonment. However, she must comply with several conditions, including restrictions on travel to South Korea and contacts with its government.
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Accused of Working on Behalf of South Korea
The indictment filed in July 2024 alleged that Terry accepted expensive gifts and other benefits in exchange for advocating South Korean government policy positions, sharing non-public information and facilitating access for South Korean officials to their American counterparts. Prosecutors alleged that she failed to register as a foreign agent under US law.
According to the allegations, Terry’s purported work on behalf of South Korea began in 2013, approximately two years after she left US government service. The alleged activities continued for around a decade. During this period, she worked as a foreign policy specialist and served as a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, a prominent foreign policy think tank. The institution placed her on unpaid leave after the indictment was filed.
The charges included violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act and conspiring to violate the law. Under US law, individuals engaged in certain political or other activities on behalf of foreign governments are required to register, depending on the nature of their work and circumstances.
Luxury Gifts and Contacts With Intelligence Officers
Under the deferred prosecution agreement, Terry has not admitted to any wrongdoing. However, she acknowledged assisting South Korean intelligence officers in several ways. These included sharing notes she had prepared for a 2022 meeting between senior US State Department officials and experts on Korean policy.
According to the documents, Terry also acknowledged accepting gifts from South Korean intelligence officers, including designer handbags valued at more than $9,200, meals at expensive restaurants on 19 occasions and a payment of $37,000 to a public policy programme on Korean affairs that she operated.
Prosecutors had alleged that these benefits were provided in exchange for advancing South Korean government interests. The allegations formed a central part of the case against her, which raised questions about the activities of foreign policy specialists and their interactions with intelligence agencies.
Terry has consistently maintained her innocence. Her lawyer, Lee Wolosky, previously argued that she had been a critic of the South Korean government and was being prosecuted for carrying out the work of an independent scholar and news analyst.
Responding to the agreement, Wolosky said Terry’s interactions with South Korean officials were conducted in furtherance of US interests and were consistent with her role as a leading American specialist on North Korea and East Asia.
Former Senior Official at the CIA and National Security Council
Born in Seoul and raised in Virginia, Terry worked as a senior CIA analyst from 2001 to 2008. She subsequently served as director of Korean, Japanese and Oceanic Affairs at the White House National Security Council from 2008 to 2009, during the transition from President George W. Bush’s administration to that of President Barack Obama.
Her case became a high-profile legal matter involving US national security and allegations that a foreign policy expert had worked on behalf of a foreign government without the required registration.
The decision to defer prosecution provides Terry with significant legal relief. However, the case will not be formally closed immediately. She must comply with the agreement’s conditions throughout the next 12 months, after which the charges will be dismissed if she fulfils the stipulated requirements.
About the author — Suvedita Nath is a science student with a growing interest in cybercrime and digital safety. She writes on online activity, cyber threats, and technology-driven risks. Her work focuses on clarity, accuracy, and public awareness.
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