Alan Gross
Alan Phillip Gross (born May 2, 1949) is a former United States government contractor employed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Alan Gross | |
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Alan Gross talking on the phone with President Barack Obama, 2014 | |
| Born | Alan Phillip Gross May 2, 1949 Rockville Centre, New York, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | United States government contractor employed by U.S. Agency for International Development |
| Criminal status | Released |
| Spouse | Judith Gross |
| Criminal penalty | 5 years in prison for importing banned technology with the intent of establishing clandestine Internet service |
| Imprisoned at | Carlos J. Finlay Military Hospital, Havana |
In December 2009 he was arrested in Cuba while working on a program funded under the 1996 Helms–Burton Act, which explicitly called for overthrow of Castro's government. He was prosecuted in 2011 after being accused of crimes against the Cuban state for furtively bringing military-grade communication equipment designed to evade detection to members of Cuba's Jewish community. After being accused of working for American intelligence services in January 2010, he was convicted of spying and for "acts against the independence or the territorial integrity of the state" in March 2011. US sources widely rejected the idea that Gross was a spy, though some noted the "covert" nature of Gross's work. Gross noted in his field reports his awareness of the risks he was taking in his mission. He was released from Cuban prison on December 17, 2014, and returned to the US in exchange for the release and return of three Cubans convicted of espionage.
While serving his prison sentence, his wife Judy Gross, sued Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI) and USAID for $60 million in federal court. The company settled for an undisclosed sum. The amount is in addition to the $3.2 million that USAID agreed to pay Gross and DAI in the November before his release.