---
born: 1946-12-14
category: PROMIS Scandal
died: 1992-11-08
location: United Kingdom
summary: However, news reports, specifically from the *Oceanside Blade-Citizen*, noted
  that documents and U.S.
tags:
- Person
- PROMIS
- CIA
- DoJ
---

[Ian Stuart Spiro](/people/ian-stuart-spiro/) was a figure whose death was linked to a spy network and the [Iran-Contra Affair](/events/iran-contra-affair/). He was found dead of cyanide poisoning in the Anza-Borrego desert on November 8, 1992, one week after his wife and children were found shot to death in their Rancho Santa Fe home. His death was officially ruled a suicide, and the San Diego Sheriff's Department reportedly destroyed his files when the case was closed, stating he had no connection to the [PROMIS](/programs/promis/) software.[^1]

However, news reports, specifically from the *Oceanside Blade-Citizen*, noted that documents and [U.S.](/places/united-states/) intelligence sources implicated Spiro in the [Iran-Contra Affair](/events/iran-contra-affair/) and an alleged [Justice Department](/organizations/department-of-justice/) conspiracy to pirate software from a private company and sell it to foreign intelligence agencies. Spiro's name also appeared in [Oliver North](/people/oliver-north/)'s personal notebooks documenting the [Iran-Contra Affair](/events/iran-contra-affair/), according to the National Security Archives in Washington D.C.[^1]

Former hostage David Jacobsen stated that Spiro helped negotiate the release of hostages in the Middle East. Spiro lived in Beirut, [Lebanon](/places/lebanon/), during the 1970s and 1980s, where he made contacts with Lebanese religious leaders and the Islamic Jihad. His brother-in-law, Greg Quarton, confirmed that Spiro maintained communication with Lebanese business associates until his death.[^1]

[Michael Riconosciuto](/people/michael-riconosciuto/) claimed that [Marshall Riconosciuto](/people/marshall-riconosciuto/) (Michael's father) shipped documents to [Ian Stuart Spiro](/people/ian-stuart-spiro/) for safekeeping. The week of the Spiro family's death, [Robert Corson](/people/robert-corson/), a business associate of Spiro's indicted in a savings and loan scam and reportedly a [CIA](/organizations/central-intelligence-agency/) operative, was found dead in an El Paso, Texas, motel room, with officials stating he died of a heart attack. Corson was also alleged to have associated with California investor [Wayne Reeder](/people/wayne-reeder/), who was seen at a [Wackenhut Corporation](/organizations/wackenhut-corporation/)/[Contra](/organizations/contras/) meeting in Riverside County.[^1]

---

[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.