'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABdAAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABxAAAgEDAwUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDAAQxBQYRBxITISQBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMRAAMAAwAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABEQIDEv/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8Ai91p6Q2s48sjLJA44JxypxUBfrTuLvb5bQ+zlATSlBglWJtd5sZ//9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Last week, a federal official charged Robert Earhart Jr. with false personation of an officer or employee of the United States. If convicted of the charge, Earhart faces a maximum prison sentence of three years, followed by one year of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
On January 11, 2023, Robert Earhart Jr. left a voicemail with the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia where he allegedly claimed to be an agent with the Central Intelligence Agency's "protective operations division" with a Top Secret security clearance.
Under the guise of the agent, he requested a meeting with the Department of Justice.
Further details provided by the authorities revealed that Earhart allegedly posed as a CIA agent on a phone call to schedule a meeting with U.S. Attorney Peter Leary, one of the chief federal law enforcement officials in the state of Georgia.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the 38-year-old Columbus resident specifically mentioned his involvement with the "protective operations division" and said he held a top-secret clearance. While popular souvenir websites sell replica movie prop badges for the "protective operations division" for $70, the CIA does not publicly advertise a "protective operations division" or any positions for it.
Robert Earhart Jr. allegedly has a history of impersonating law enforcement officers
According to a federal criminal complaint that was unsealed last week, 38-year-old Robert Earhart Jr. had requested a meeting with the Department of Justice under the guise of being a law enforcement agent.
A press release by the U.S. Attorney's Office claimed that Earhart had a history of impersonating officials.
Robert Earhart Jr. has previously identified himself as a Homeland Security agent and as a Drug Enforcement Agency agent on two different occasions.
The press release stated that:
"Earhart, Jr. is also alleged to have represented himself as a Homeland Security agent. Earhart, Jr. has a history of impersonating law enforcement officers, including previously identifying himself as a DEA agent, when he attempted to free three inmates from the Muscogee County, Georgia, jail in May 2019. Earhart, Jr. was taken into custody by local law enforcement at the U.S. Courthouse in Columbus, on Feb. 8."
In May 2019, Robert Earhart Jr. attempted to free three inmates from the Muscogee County Jail in Georgia by impersonating a DEA agent. Despite selling souvenirs from the "protective operations division," the CIA does not publicly advertise for such a role.
The CIA does hire "protective agents" who, according to their website, "deploy worldwide to perform sensitive operations in support of protective requirements to defend our nation from those that try to do us harm."
The job requirement asks for six years of combined military or law enforcement experience.
