Will Al Qaeda Mole Get Big Payday for Foiling Plot?
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iStockphoto/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) –The British spy who managed to infiltrate an al Qaeda cell and thwart a scheme to blow up a U.S.-bound airliner may be eligible for tens of millions of dollars in reward money, courtesy of the U.S. government.
The U.S. State Department said Friday that under their Rewards for Justice program the mystery double agent — who officials said was recruited by British intelligence from the U.K.’s Muslim population and posed as a would-be suicide bomber — could be paid up to $25 million for playing an integral role in preventing a terrorist strike against U.S. interests, if he’s determined eligible. Another $5 million could be paid if information provided by the mole led to a recent air strike that killed Fahd al-Quso, a high-level commander in al Qaeda’s Yemen branch, AQAP.
But one State Department official told ABC News that right now there is not nearly enough information about who the mole is and what he did to know if he is even eligible for the reward.
Established in the mid-1980s, the Rewards for Justice program has paid out over $100 million to more than 70 tipsters, according to the State Department.
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