Charles McGonigal, former special agent in charge of the FBI's counterintelligence division in New York, arrives to Manhattan federal court in New York, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023, in New York.
Charles McGonigal, former special agent in charge of the FBI's counterintelligence division in New York, arrives at a federal courthouse in Manhattan on Feb. 9.
  • An FBI spy chief's secret meeting with a Russian contact was detected by UK officials.
  • Charles McGonigal, the ex-FBI official, is charged with taking money from Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska. 
  • McGonigal should have realized that the London meeting would be noticed, one source said.

In 2018, Charles McGonigal, the FBI's former New York spy chief, traveled to London where he met with a Russian contact who was under surveillance by British authorities, two US intelligence sources told Insider.