First, we had one of the alleged Russian spy couples cultivating Alan Patricof, a financier, a friend of the Clintons, and a board member of the all-but-defunct Israel Policy Forum:.
Now, the New York Daily News is hooking up Anna Chapman, perhaps the least important but most, uh, visible of the alleged spies with Michel Bittan, a Moroccan born Israeli-American businessman who lives in New Jersey:
Anna Chapman – a 28-year-old Stalingrad stunner busted this week – was dating a 60-year-old divorced dad who shared her taste for the high life, friends said.
Chapman told pals she was seeing Michel Bittan, a New Jersey businessman with deep pockets and influential friends.
"He was older, but he clearly loves surrounding himself with beautiful women, mostly Russian, and since the spring Anna was in his inner circle," said a fellow Russian party girl.
I’m not sure the story makes the case for more than an acquaintance — as in, they hung out in the same circles. Precious little suggests a relationship.
Still, considering the alleged mission — cultivating the powerful and influential — the Chapman-Bittan connection is interesting.
