Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators

by Ronan Farrow

“Before the order to give all my phone, my computer,” she said, as she delved deeper into her hard drive, “I sent recording to myself, to all my emails.” She’d agreed to give Kroll the passwords to all those accounts, and knew they’d find any she didn’t disclose. But, in order to buy herself a brief window of opportunity, she’d told them she couldn’t recall one password. Then, as Kroll wiped the other accounts, one by one, she’d logged into the one for which she was supposedly recovering the password, forwarded the audio to a temporary “burner” email, then cleared her sent mail. Finally, she downloaded the files to this old laptop, which she stuffed in the back of a closet. “I was not sure it works,” she said. “It was like—” She made a gasping noise and held her breath, as if bracing for the worst. But Kroll didn’t come knocking, and the laptop collected dust, uncharged, for two years.