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You don't have to betray your country like CIA mole Aldrich Ames to dabble in the black art of espionage.
John Landbeck, a night school history teacher in Harford County, plans to help people do it legally -- so long as his customers sign waivers, promising to use his spy gear in accordance with state and federal laws.
Landbeck will soon be peddling wristwatch cameras, electronic bugs and other potential spy gear at the Spy Factory, a retail store in Timonium opening April 1. It's the first of its kind in Maryland and the 19th in a national chain.
At least one ex-spook, however, senses skullduggery afoot.
Glen Widden, a former CIA agent and president of Technical Services Agency Inc., a Gaithersburg firm specializing in surveillance and counter-measuring service and equipment, says the legality of such spy stores is questionable.
"When I first found out about these stores, I called a friend at the FBI and asked him how these places stay open," says Widden.
"Then I found out it wasn't a crime until the...