USSR double agent - Edvīns Ozoliņš with the nickname "Pilot"
Cold War intelligence and counterintelligence battles between the West and the USSR involved agents from both sides and double agents. Since the twenties of the 20th century, the Soviet security services had developed a completely new measure - disinformation - for the purpose of protecting the regime. A term which until then was not known at all in the West.
Edvīns Ozoliņš (pseudonym "Herberts", "Herberts Okolo" for communication with the US government institutions, cryptonym CAMUSO/2). Ozoliņš was born in Riga in 1914. During the Second World War, he served as a mechanic in the Latvian aviation unit. Together with the unit went to Germany. At the moment of capitulation, he managed to escape to Sweden. It is hard to understand why the Americans liked Ozoliņš, because he was a completely untalented and useless radio operator. Perhaps the Americans liked Ozoliņš's American wide smile, and the Americans fell for that smile as well.
Already on February 7, 1950, the French intelligence service warned the Americans that Ozoliņa was considered a Soviet intelligence agent and demanded all available information about him. The CIA, on the other hand, decided that they had at least 75 cards with Ozolinis, and they could not determine which Ozolinis they were talking about. But the French were right.
In Lukašević's synopsis of the operational game "Meteor":
"1951 in (7V) State security. it became known to the authorities that the CIA was preparing a group of spies for illegal transfer to Latvia. Latvian emigrant Edvīns Ozoliņš [..] told about it, who lived in Stockholm at the time and wanted to return to his homeland. [sic!]” [2]
As can be seen from both Lukashevich's notes and the textbook "History of the Soviet State Security Organs" created for the needs of the KGB higher school, Ozoliņš was recruited under the nickname "Pilot". However, at the same time, it is known that the agent "Pilot" was connected to the residencies of the 1st Main Directorate (external intelligence) of the USSR at the time, and at the level of the KGB of the LPSR, no one had any idea about him.
https://www.lsm.lv/raksts/dzive--stils/vesture/kgb-slepenie-arhivi.-spiegu-speles-latvija-cia-agenti-psrs-dienesta.a261845/
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Memorial stone of Alfred Riekstiņš
Memorial stone to Latvian Legion lieutenant and national partisan Alfred Riekstiņš, who died near the "Dreimaņi" house on September 11, 1952
On September 11, 1952, Alfred Riekstiņš, a lieutenant of the 19th SS Grenadier Division (Latvian No. 2) of the Latvian Legion and a Knight of the Iron Cross, died in the yard of the "Dreimaņi" house. On May 9, 1945, Alfred Riekstiņš from Pāvilosta arrived in Sweden with one of the last boats. On August 30, 1952, Alfrēds Riekstiņš, together with two former Latvian soldiers, landed in Kurzeme on behalf of the US intelligence services. The security services of the USSR knew about the operation and surrounded the intelligence officers in the shed of the "Dreimaņi" house, where Alfred Riekstiņš committed suicide by biting a poison ampoule.
Exhibition in the KGB Building "History of KGB Operations in Latvia"
The former USSR State Security Committee (commonly known as Cheka) building is open for visitors. Here chekists imprisoned, interrogated and murdered Latvian citizens who were considered opponents by the occupation regime. There is also an exhibit from the Latvian Occupation Museum on the activities of Cheka in Latvia. Guided tours of the prison cells, corridors, basement and courtyard are available. The house was built in 1911 and it is one of the most beautiful buildings in Riga. Called the ‘Corner House’ by the people, it was the scariest symbol of the Soviet occupation regime in Latvia, and also one of the pillars of power of the USSR. Cheka operated from the Corner House during the occupation from 1940 to 1941 and then again from 1945 to 1991. Tens of thousands of Latvians were affected by direct political persecution. The fight against enemies of Soviet rule continued also after World War II. Cheka’s approach towards its operation slightly changed after Stalin’s death. Physical torture was replaced by psychological terror. The majority of Cheka agents were Latvians (52%). Russians were the second largest group – 23.7%. 60.3% of the agents were not members of the Communist Party. 26.9% of the agents had higher education. The system was designed in a way to involve local people and thus have greater control over the society. Staff documents and service records are located in Russia. And these materials have not been made available to Latvian authorities and researchers.
