2) License to Kill

Join me. I'm going down in the cave. As I track down clues. I'm going to call the police and have you removed.

Warning. The following episode contains explicit language and sexual themes. Listener discretion is advised.

After I watched these, Aaliyah did give me photographs and documents, and even let me speak to one of her former colleagues in Russia. But even the authenticity of these can't be proven. I also wondered something else. How much of some people's skeptical response to Aaliyah comes from the fact that she's a woman presenting herself in a glamorous way online and selling information products. After all, for the men at the table on the night I met Aaliyah, what was the proof that my friend Johnny Jr.'s family was in the mafia?

Or that my other friend really held the high position he claims at the CIA? Best-selling author Chris Voss has made a career out of being a former FBI hostage negotiator. And he also sells information products online.

My name is Aaliyah Rosa, and I was a secret service agent in Russia.

My name is Aaliyah Rosa. I fled my country due to the last mission. I worked as a secret service agent.

I mean, yeah, we were spying, but it's kind of like, spy is kind of like a movie thing. Like, oh, spy. It's so sexy. But it wasn't, you know, it's just like, okay, we were agents. Even, like, in my diploma and in my certificate, it says, like, agent.

You know, we don't call each other spies.

But in fact, they would call it espionage. It's exactly what is spying.

Where to put them, basically, where to place them. Like, for example, you can pour some in a water or tea. And how long will this poison affect the body?

And when the poison will disappear. So, when they would do, when the person already is dead, and they would do, how do you call it in English? Autopsy? Yeah. Autopsy.

Then they wouldn't find anything. It would be just like, I don't know why this person died. Maybe a heart attack or whatever, like, or maybe something, you know. Just, like, happens.

And it's so addictive.

I had to kill you. I'm really sorry, I had to do it. Gotta go on my own.

From unbelievable romantic betrayals.

Good evening. And Merry Christmas to all Americans across our great country. During these last few months, you and I have witnessed one of the greatest dramas of the 20th century. The historic and revolutionary transformation of a totalitarian dictatorship, the Soviet Union. And the liberation of its peoples.

New independent nations have emerged out of the wreckage of the Soviet Empire. This act marks the end of the old Soviet Union, signified today by Mikhail Gorbachev's decision to resign as president. I am ceasing my activities in the post of President of the USSR.

So we had our, like, citizenship of Russia, but yet we have our heritage coming from Central Asia.

I was born in the family of a high-ranked officer of the military army. My father was working on the Department of Domestic Security, protecting the city and the country from criminal gangs coming from former USSR countries. His father was a national hero, fighting against the Nazis in the Second World War. And being a little girl, my dad would bring me to the main monument in Stalingrad, and he would show his father's name written on the wall with other heroes. At Stalingrad, German forces were locked in a deadly struggle with the city's beleaguered Red Army defenders.

In the terrible battle, half a million Nazi troops were killed, wounded or captured, and more than three quarters of a million Russians.

Being a little girl, I remember I looked at my dad going to the work, wearing this uniform, and every single evening, when he would come back home, he would take me on his lap, and he would tell me that I also should protect people one day, and also would serve military one day to protect my country and my people. I was so proud of my dad, and I was so proud to be his daughter, and I just wanted him to be proud of me too.

And I remember the first moment I took a gun, and it was heavy and cold, but it was really powerful. He had another gun which was my favorite. It's much faster, it's more effective, it's called Stete. Instead of like Pistolet Makarov, which is gun Makarov, it's kind of like common, everybody using it, but Stete gun is like one of my, it was one of my favorite.

And I had that excitement that I'm holding this special weapon, like a superhero, to protect other, you know, innocent or weak people.

And myself, like, for example, daughters, they have to, when they will marry, they have to be virgin, and before the marriage they cannot have any sexual relationship with anyone. So my father didn't allow me to go out, my father didn't allow me to have friends, not even like boyfriends or whatever, so I was even more shy. So I was not allowed to wear makeup or nail polish, like super short skirts or something like that.

If I would go out with my friend and I would be late for five minutes, my father would literally beat me with his belt.

So I was honestly like I was scared of him very much.

And even though I was physically strong and I could really beat them up, all of them, but I just was not confident and I was just so.

I was just an ugly duckling.

From unbelievable romantic betrayals.

. I'm going down in the cave. ...tracking down clues...

. A disappearing act.

And mind you, Russian society, it's a very brainwashed society in many ways. You know, whatever the Kremlin says goes. And I think any time you believe that you have the righteous power or that somehow, whatever you're doing is for the great of good, you can justify any sort of horrible behavior against another individual.

2% of the entire forces are made up of women. From everything that I've heard and people that I've interviewed myself, it's just an extremely hostile environment to work in. And I know even with the U.S. military, it's a very hard slog for women. So many face sexual assault.

But in the Russian military, I want to say that that is significantly, even more intense and even higher.

One particular woman that I remember interviewing back in 2017, when I was doing some work in Moscow, and she had been a Russian military medic.

And there is this mentality of where the military wants to break you. That can be done in so many different ways. And I think for women, that's often manifest itself in sexual assault.

But I personally have never heard of any sort of repercussion against a Russian soldier for sexual assault or rape against a fellow combat troop.

Because of the gravity of what follows, Aliyah's story will be shared in its entirety, as she first told it, without any interruptions. For many like Aliyah, it's important not to minimize or dilute the severity of these types of experiences. Please note that what she discloses here is very graphic and may be disturbing to some listeners.

I will do my best. I will serve my country. That's amazing. I want to be that hero, like my grandfather was. And in that department, there were about 50 agents, and only me was a female one.

So all these 49 guys looked at me in the way like, oh, a new meet. And I didn't realize, basically, that I was that, you know, like a deer surrounded by wolves. I didn't realize because I was too young and too unexperienced as a woman.

Just a few days later, when I was accepted as an intern and I had to start my job routine and I had to just learn and see what is it about and everything, somebody called to our home number. It was 8 p.m., and I was reading a book. I remember I was preparing to go to sleep. My dad picked up the phone, and he spoke with someone, and I heard, yes, yes, okay, I understand. Yeah, she'll be right back.

She'll be, yeah, she'll be there. Okay, she'll take taxi. She'll come. Then my dad came, and he said to me, your colleague just called, and they said it's a huge murder, so everybody have to come and try to help, you know, to find out killers and murders, so you have to go and help your department. So get ready.

Do it, like, immediately.

I came to the department. It was about like 8.30.. I didn't know, right? It was my first alarm ever. So I don't know what's going on.

And I just saw only one guy there, like one of my colleagues, my agent, who was that time about like maybe 27,, 28,, something like that. And I came and said, hey, all right, so I received the call, and he said, yeah, I called you, dad. I'm like, okay, yeah, I'm ready to do, like, okay, so what do I need to do? He didn't tell me anything, and I was like, why is he so quiet? Like, what's going on?

And then I looked at the department. Everything was like dark, like no other agents, no lights. Every room was closed, like, you know, every office's room was closed, and I asked him why no one is in the department, like, where everybody? And he's like, oh, everybody's on their own spot, so don't worry about it. And he asked me, do you want a drink?

I'm like, drink? First of all, I don't drink. I was not allowed to drink alcohol, obviously. Second, like, what drink? I'm like, I mean, we're supposed to work, right?

And I asked him, like, I mean, like, no, I don't, thank you. He said, come here to that room, because everything is closed. So I entered, like, the room, and I saw a table. I saw a couch, and I saw, you know, a lamp, which was, like, kind of, like, in a dark mode, so it's not too bright. And I saw vodka on the table and some kind of, like, snacks.

And slowly, I started to think that this is not what I'm supposed to do. I'm supposed to work. I'm supposed to be on the alarm. I'm supposed to, like, do my job, like, but this is not, like, there is nothing like that.

I had this thought, that something going on, but I couldn't understand what.

And he just came to me so close that I could feel his breath, and I understood that he had been drinking. And that moment, okay, should I run? Like, what should I do? I don't know. And then I started to think, wait a minute, how can I run?

Because he closed the door with the keys, and I don't have the keys. I cannot open the door to get out. Like, what am I supposed to do? Beat him? I cannot beat him.

He's, like, bigger than me, like, two times. I'm very petite, 110 pounds, and he is, like, huge guy, two times bigger than me. Like, how am I supposed to run? And I mean, like, how am I supposed to escape? And I started to think about it.

So it's just, like, very quickly and rapidly, like, all these thoughts came into my mind, and I just understood that, like, I don't know what to do. There is no way to get out.

And he took his hand, and he put his hand on my neck. I couldn't move because he pushed his body on my body, close to the wall, so I couldn't even move anywhere. And he said, so. there are two options. Number one, either you fuck with me right now, and number two, I'll still fuck you, but I don't want to leave bruises on your body.

And if you think that you will go and complain to your daddy, this is not happening. Because you know why? Because you don't want your daddy, go to jail, right? Don't you? And I'm like, no.

He said, and you cannot go to police. I'm the power. I'm the government person. You can't do anything. Do you understand?

And I just nod my head. And he said, okay, so what do you choose? And I said, but wait, listen. First of all, I'm a virgin.

I'm coming from a very religious family. I don't know anything about it. And he said, well, even better for me.

That day I had a period. I didn't even use tampons, so I was using pads because I was a virgin. So I said, like, this is not pleasant for you at all. Like, I mean, I have a period. Like, I can't do that anyway.

I said, like, let's do it another time, right? I'll come another day and we'll do it. I mean, I'm still here. I work here. I'm not running away or something.

So I tried to call to his logical mindset. To make him to think that it doesn't make any sense.

And he said to me, hey, what, do you think? you'll bullshit me? Are you stupid?

And that moment I understood that it just doesn't work.

He just grabbed my small body.

And he pushed me so strong to the couch. He just jumped on me. And he jumped on me so hard that I felt that all my legs and everything, like, I'm in pain. Because he, like, basically he jumped on me. And I felt like his bones on my bones.

And I felt like he basically almost, like, broke my knees.

I was thinking, okay, so if I will scream. There is no one in this building. So even if I will scream, there is no one really to come.

And she just looked into my eyes. And she said that, just make it fast. You know, it all depends on you.

And I started to cry. And he said, like, I don't care if you cry.

I was wearing a skirt. He just threw away my panties with my pad. And immediately he just tried to put his penis. And he couldn't do it, because I had the Virgin Haman. And I was super dry, of course.

And he couldn't just basically go inside. And he started to scream at me. He said to me, open yourself. Like, let me in. And I just couldn't do anything.

And I said, I can't. Like, I was just crying and screaming. Like, I cannot do it. I cannot do it. And he started to beat me.

He said, I couldn't beat your face because it's obvious bruises. And you have to come to your job tomorrow. And you have to be very quiet about what happened.

So I know how to beat without leaving any evidences. So he started to beat my stomach. And it was painful. And he said, if you won't let me in, you'll be in pain even longer. I'll beat you till your fucking death.

Open your fucking legs.

I just understood that I cannot do anything. And I just had to let him go inside and just rape me.

The moment I relaxed my body, he rapidly just went inside. And it was so painful. And I screamed. I screamed because it was unexpected pain. And I felt that pressure inside of me.

And that moment, everything I read in the books or everything I've heard about sex, I was like, wait a minute. This is sex? This is painful and disgusting. It cannot be a pleasure. Like, I don't understand.

Like, this is so bad.

He did come quite quick, thank God. And the moment he did come, he just jumped out of me. And I was so,

you know, I just wanted to run away. And I had clothes all over. My blouse was ripped. And my skirt was somewhere. And everything was in blood.

He left into the toilet, I suppose.

And I was thinking, like, I need to get the hell out right now because I don't want to see him. I just need to get out. I don't know where the keys are, so I have to ask him to open the door and everything. And somebody knocked the door. Somebody came.

And I said, like, fuck, why didn't they fucking come, like, just two minutes ago when he could, like, stop and, like, it was, like, such a bad luck.

And that guy was still in the bathroom. And he went out. He ran into the opening of the door, and he told me, If you will tell anyone about this, I'll make sure that you'll never see the next day. Do you understand?

And I looked into his eyes, and I understood that he's not joking. Like, this is not a joke. He's, like, serious.

And I just, I said, yeah.

I said, okay. And I just, like, I need to go home because my dad is waiting. I need to go home. Like, yeah, okay. Go.

I just ran.

I was so broken and devastated. And I remember when I left the department running back home, the only one thought I had, How can I leave that? no one will notice what really happened to me? Because when I went to the bus, I thought that everybody looked at me, that I just, you know, I just had, like, blood all over myself. And I was thinking, like, how can I hide it from my dad so he wouldn't notice or ask me anything?

And how can I live with this pain inside of me? I can't cry. I cannot show it. How can I live with this? With this, like, disappointment, right?

It's, like, everything, wherever I believed, all these romances. And he's supposed to be a good guy in the story. He's an agent. How could this officer, a military officer who protects people from criminal, how could he rape me?

I told myself that moment that the revenge will come and karma will do the best for him.

And eventually, it did.

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If you or a loved one are a survivor of sexual assault, you can visit RAINN.

org. That's R-A-I-N-N.org. Or call 1-800-656-4673 for free, confidential, 24-7 support.

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In 2001.