Was anyone expecting to find this?

On the desk of either Carlos or Elsa Alvarez. They are both employed by Florida International University in Miami-Dade County. The married couple was arrested last Friday, charged with spying for Cuba.

MIAMI -- A college professor and his wife, a university administrator, have been charged with being illegal agents of Cuba's communist government run by President Fidel Castro, according to court documents unsealed Monday.

Carlos Alvarez, 61, a psychology professor at Florida International University, and his wife, 55-year-old Elsa Alvarez, have been charged with acting as agents of Cuba without registering with the U.S. government as required.

The indictment said that the couple had provided the Cuban government with information about individuals, groups, political figures, exiles and matters of interest to Cuba.

Carlos and Elsa Alvarez were ordered held without bond by U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrea Simonton, who rejected pleas by their attorneys for release on bail. Simonton said she agreed with federal prosecutors that the couple would leave their five children and return to Cuba if released.

Neither entered a plea. Another hearing was set for Jan. 19. They were arrested Friday, months after giving voluntary statements this summer about their contacts with Cuba to the FBI, prosecutors said.

The Indictment

Brian Frazier, an assistant U.S. attorney, said that Alvarez had spied for Cuba since 1977 and his wife since 1982. Neither was charged with the more serious offense of espionage, and FBI agents acknowledged there is not evidence that they provided classified or military information to
Cuba.

Much of what they provided, according to Frazier, involved information about the U.S. political situation, prominent Cuban-Americans in South Florida and the names of at least one FBI agent.

If the government proves their case in a court of law, I hope the Alvarezes spend the rest of their natural lives in jail. The part about revealing the identity of a FBI I find very troubling.

My little sign up top refers to some of Channel 10's further reporting on this story.

Colleagues at FIU said the arrests came as a complete shock. Many expressed disbelief that Alvarez could be considered a spy.

The couple's offices were left as though they expected to return. His with notes, pictures of him with students, and a gift. Hers was tidy, filled with psychology-related books and impressionist art.

There was no indication in the offices or in any records kept by the college of any possible ties to spying for Cuba.

Well duh! Were you expecting them to be James Bond? That only takes place in fiction writing and movies. Someone spying for another country would keep a low profile.

Hat tip- Florida Cracker
Open Post- Bright & Early, MVRWC, Basil's Blog, Outside the Beltway,