Attorney: New info on KGB uniform shows Texas man is not a spy

HONOLULU – A former Nacogdoches resident accused of identity theft and of possibly being a Russian spy is asking to be released on bail. According to our news partner KETK and a sister station in Hawaii, a legal expert said new information about the alleged KGB uniform presented as evidence may be enough for the judge to grant his request. The attorney for Walter Primrose makes several arguments for his release. Among them, he said the invisible ink kit found in his Kapolei, Hawaii, home, “is believed to be a toy purchased many years ago for entertainment.” More importantly he said, the KGB uniform worn by Primrose and his wife Gwynn Morrison in an old photo didn’t belong to them. The prosecutor sent an email to defense attorneys saying the photos of the couple in the uniform, meaning there was only one, was taken in the 90s, and “federal agents were given the alleged uniform.”

Some legal experts said the defense makes some valid points. But other legal experts said Primrose’s record of posing as someone else for so long and joining the Coast Guard is tough to ignore. Primrose and Morrison are accused of stealing the identities of two dead infants in Texas, and of using those identities for more than 30 years. Primrose enlisted in the Coast Guard and then worked as a contractor for the Department of Defense, getting secret clearance. They’re charged with conspiracy, aggravated ID theft, and lying to get passports. They haven’t been charged as spies, and Ali Silvert, a retired federal public defender, said it doesn’t appear that they will be. A judge has scheduled a hearing for Monday, Aug. 22, to decide if Primrose should remain in the hands of law enforcement.