ANALYSIS/OPINION:

On Oct. 15, 2015, FBI agents placed Wayne Simmons under arrest for fraud against the government which involved falsifying government job application forms and wire fraud involving the interstate transfer of funds. Subsequently, on July 15, 2016, Judge T.S Ellis in the Federal Eastern District Court of Virginia, found Mr. Wayne Simmons guilty of making false statements on a government job application Form SF86 dated April 7, 2010 — that’s over six years ago. The judge accepted a plea bargain from Mr. Simmons in which he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and government fraud, but which allowed him to keep his CIA contractor bona fides. The judge sentenced Mr. Simmons to 33 months in prison after complaining that he did not see any “Operations Files.”

Unfortunately, the judge was denied relevant information which would have shown that Mr. Simmons was filling out the SF86 form according to instructions he received from his defense security service administrator. Further, as a result of leaked intelligence from “Operations Files,” identical to those submitted earlier this year to a U.S. Congressional Intelligence Committee by Mr. Simmons, he continues to provide past intelligence data and operations files as proof of his innocence.

Separately, Mr. Simmons and his attorney, Jean-Jacques “J” Cabou, had contacted and begun discussions with a Congressional Intelligence Committee almost a year prior to his arrest. However, the Department of Justice (DOJ), the FBI and the CIA were unaware of these discussions. A thorough, professional and detailed review of these never-before-seen “Operations Files” proves to us, among other things, that Simmons spent 27 years as a covert intelligence operator and was part of a highly specialized undercover team that performed domestic black operations. Mr. Simmons service files contain the names, dates and places, detailing his world-wide travels and his covert operations.

Our review of Mr. Simmons‘ files, many of which are over 40 years old, further show his training facilities along with their locations, his jump logs, flight-hour logs and paymaster checks that detail how Mr. Simmons was paid. They also provide detailed directions and photographs of the stash- and safe-houses used by Mr. Simmons, and other intelligence agencies. The question that has to be asked is, “Why after all these years, would the DOJ and the FBI spend over one million dollars and over two years of effort to conduct what is clearly a witch hunt and go to such lengths to destroy an American undercover agent?”

One reason may be the fact that prior to his arrest, Mr. Simmons served as an unpaid terrorist analyst for FOX News for over 12 years. The personal destruction of Mr. Simmons by the DOJ and the FBI should alarm all Americans. He has become a prime target for many on the left since he was an outspoken member of the Citizens’ Commission on Benghazi (CCB), an organization that, along with Judicial Watch (JW), filed a plethora of FOIAs and pressured members of Congress like Rep. Trey Gowdy, the Chairman of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, to conduct a comprehensive investigation on this tragedy. Mr. Simmons was critical of the Obama administration, particularly Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, for her mishandling of the Benghazi attack.

Clearly, Judge Ellis needs to be provided with the relevant information that has been denied to him, including the “Operations Files” in the possession of the Congressional Intelligence Committee. With this new information, a miscarriage of justice can be prevented, and Wayne Simmons, a true American, can rebuild his life and continue to serve his country.

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• James A. Lyons, a retired U.S. Navy admiral, was commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and senior U.S. military representative to the United Nations. Contributing: Tom McInerney, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant general, served in top military positions and reported directly to the secretary of Defense and to the vice president of the United States. Paul E. Vallely, a retired U.S. Army major general, is chairman of Stand Up America and of the Legacy National Security Advisory Group.