January 21, 2003
ALL LIFE CAN BE EXPLAINED BY REFERENCE TO THE GODFATHER (part 42):
One of the great mysteries of our time is how Scott Ritter went from the most hawkish of the Iraqi arms inspectors to essentially being Saddam's boy toy. Well, remember in the Godfather II when Senator Geary is giving the Corleones a hard time, so they set him up in a brothel and make it look like he whacked a hooker? Check out this story on the suddenly pliant Mr. Ritter, Arrest wasn't first time police had eye on Ritter Former U.N. arms inspector reportedly was under inquiry when cops charged him in 2001 (MIKE GOODWIN, January 21, 2003
The Internet sex case that led to the arrest of a former U.N. weapons inspector was not his first involvement with police on that type of crime, a person familiar with the case said Monday.Scott Ritter was under investigation for trying to set up a meeting with a girl through the Internet when town police charged him in June 2001 with using an online chat room to set up a similar rendezvous at a Menands restaurant, the source said on condition of anonymity.
Police began investigating the 41-year-old Ritter, who lives in Delmar, in April 2001 after he tried to meet someone he thought was a 14-year-old girl, the source said. Ritter drove to a Colonie business, where he instead was met by police officers, the source said.
Ritter, an outspoken critic of President Bush's plans for war against Iraq, was released without being charged while police investigated.
Two months later, the source said, Ritter was caught in the same type of Internet sex-sting operation after he tried to lure a 16-year-old girl to a Burger King in Menands. The supposed teenager actually was an undercover investigator posing online as a minor as part of the town Police Department's investigation of Internet sex crime, the source said.
Considering the startling transformation in Mr. Ritter's views on Iraq, mightn't we fairly assume that Saddam has a videotape of him with some poor Iraqi teenager? Posted by Orrin Judd at January 21, 2003 7:35 PM
His 15 minutes of fame, at last.....
Posted by: Tom Roberts at January 21, 2003 8:25 PMDemonstrating why sex was not a private matter in the Clinton scandal... blackmail can endanger an entire nation.
Posted by: ninety-two at January 21, 2003 11:32 PMIf it is blackmail, then he is even a bigger slimeball -- before this I had assumed he had some principled stance, obtuse as it was.
Posted by: Jeff Brokaw at January 22, 2003 7:38 AMI wonder if a full investigation of the U.N. inspectors might reveal abuses like the sex rings run by U.N. workers in Bosnia. There could be something to this, especially given how bellicose this guy was and then he had a 180 turn around with no good reason.
Posted by: Buttercup at January 22, 2003 8:01 AMRecall that other inspector who turned out to be president of his local S&M club....
Posted by: oj at January 22, 2003 8:20 AMExactly, ninety-two.
Posted by: Henry Hanks at January 22, 2003 8:55 PM