On Wednesday, the FBI raided the New York home of Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector, as part of an ongoing federal investigation. FBI spokeswoman Sarah Ruane confirmed the search to WNYT but did not provide further details.
Witnesses observed agents searching and photographing vehicles at Ritter’s property shortly after noon. Both marked and unmarked police cars were present, and Ritter was not home at the time of the search.
Earlier this year, Ritter’s passport was revoked by the U.S. State Department. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted him at John F. Kennedy Airport as he attempted to board a flight to Russia, and his passport was seized.
Ritter, who resigned from his position as chief weapons inspector in Iraq in 1998, had criticized the Clinton administration and the United Nations for not pursuing rigorous weapons inspections. In 2011, Ritter was convicted on several charges stemming from a child sex sting operation. He was found guilty of misdemeanor indecent exposure and felony charges, including unlawful conduct with a minor and criminal use of a communications device.
During his trial, the jury was shown video evidence of Ritter performing a sexual act for someone he believed to be a 15-year-old girl named “Emily,” who was actually an undercover detective. Ritter was sentenced to five and a half years in prison and was released on parole in December 2014.
The reasons for the current federal investigation and the raid on Ritter’s home remain undisclosed, but they reflect ongoing legal scrutiny of the former weapons inspector.
