The First Female CIA Officer in Moscow, The Widow Spy | Marti Peterson (throwback episode)
Published: December 10, 2025
Duration: 2:29:40
Original airdate 7/16/2021
In this episode, the team sits down with legendary CIA case officer Marty Peterson, whose Cold War mission in Moscow led to one of the most dramatic KGB arrests of the era. Marty walks through running a top Soviet asset, the night of the failed dead drop, her capture at Lubyanka Prison, and what she later learned about her agent’s tragic fate. It’s a firsthand look inside real espionage, tradecraft, and the cost of intelligence work at the highest level.
00:00 – CIA Widow Spy: Marty Peterson Intro
12:40 – Moscow Tradecraft: Dead Drops & Surveillance
27...
In this episode, the team sits down with legendary CIA case officer Marty Peterson, whose Cold War mission in Moscow led to one of the most dramatic KGB arrests of the era. Marty walks through running a top Soviet asset, the night of the failed dead drop, her capture at Lubyanka Prison, and what she later learned about her agent’s tragic fate. It’s a firsthand look inside real espionage, tradecraft, and the cost of intelligence work at the highest level.
00:00 – CIA Widow Spy: Marty Peterson Intro
12:40 – Moscow Tradecraft: Dead Drops & Surveillance
27...