Red Cell - Dick Marcinko

Back in 1990, one of the founding members of SEAL Team 6 was sentenced to prison for his role in a mission that exposed security lapses at sensitive military installations. That Navy captain, Richard Marcinko, spoke to Mike Wallace in 1992 for a 60 Minutes investigation of Red Cell, the group of "terrorists" led by Marcinko that captured a U.S. nuclear submarine, kidnapped U.S. admirals, and even targeted Air Force One.

Marcinko has claimed, among other things, that Red Cell successfully captured nuclear devices from United States Navy facilities, and proved the viability of plans to:

• penetrate and attack nuclear-powered submarines
• destroy subs by using them as dirty bombs
• capture launch codes for nuclear weapons aboard the subs by using mild torture techniques on personnel in charge of launch codes.

Former members of Red Cell maintain that these exercises were a cover to move SPECWAR operators around the world for covert missions against real-world terrorists. Commander Marcinko retired from the Navy on February 1, 1989 with thirty years, three months and 17 days of enlisted and commissioned active duty service.

As you'll see in the report above, Marcinko maintained that he was singled out for prosecution because he embarrassed Navy officials, despite the harsh tactics he and his team employed.


Read more about Red Cell HERE.