Corruption Chronicles
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December 02, 2025
In the latest controversy to rock the Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS), an agency veteran who created a wasteful VIP Congressional Concierge and oversaw a surveillance program that put Americans—including Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard—with opposing political views on a terror watchlist has been promoted to assistant director. His name is Serge V. Potapov, and he has risen through the ranks at FAMS despite playing a key role in highly questionable programs and a documented history of misconduct that put him at the center of various investigations over the years, according to agency documents reviewed by Judicial Watch. Now Potapov, a former U.S. Marine who recently served as a counselor to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is second in command at FAMS which operates under the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), created after 9/11 to prevent another terrorist attack. Both agencies function under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and have been plagued by controversy and mismanagement that has left the nation vulnerable from a security standpoint, say multiple DHS sources interviewed by Judicial Watch over the years.
FAMS in particular has experienced tremendous instability with four different directors in around as many years and flagrant mismanagement that includes controversial deployments of the uniquely skilled law enforcement officers to the Mexican border to perform duties unrelated to transportation, such as welfare checks, hospital watch and chauffeuring illegal immigrants. TSA has admitted it does not know the operational impact that the air marshal border deployments had on aviation security. During the chaos last year FAMS named a deputy director, Pauline (Polly) Hanson, with a shady history that includes being investigated for fraud and conflict of interest as chief of the Amtrak Police, a federal law enforcement agency of about 500 charged with protecting the nation’s railroad system. Hanson’s appointment rattled many inside FAMS and raised questions about the criteria to qualify for the top-secret clearance required for the position. Hanson stepped down after a few weeks on the job because Judicial Watch exposed her record, which was brought to our attention by the Air Marshal National Council, the union that represents thousands of agents nationwide and has uncovered a multitude of problems at the agency in recent years.
Now, the union is battling against another highly questionable figure quietly elevated to assistant director at the ailing agency. As of this week Potapov is Assistant Administrator at FAMS despite a lengthy history of wrongdoing. His misconduct began at the Federal Air Marshal Training Center in New Jersey where he simulated shooting a female instructor in the head, kicked her during training, pulled her hair and told women “You don’t belong here,” according to documents provided to Judicial Watch by the Air Marshal National Council. Potapov was suspended and involuntarily transferred to the Philadelphia Field Office before being promoted to help lead the Insider Threat Unit, which got blasted in a DHS audit for its many failures during his leadership. An agency insider told Judicial Watch Potapov helped build a unit later condemned as structurally broken. Yet in 2020 he was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge in Washington D.C. where he helped create a special VIP Congressional Concierge that pulled air marshals off high-risk flights so members of Congress could get extra protection on flights that did not meet the threat criteria, usually determined by the FBI, for air marshals. In 2021 Judicial Watch exposed the program, reporting that FAMS were yanked from a high-risk flight so California Congresswoman Maxine Waters could have extra security during a trip to Minnesota though she was already covered by a four-man detail consisting of two Capitol Police officers and two Secret Service agents. The story led to the program’s elimination, DHS sources confirmed.
After launching the outrageous VIP Congressional Concierge, Potapov was promoted to executive director of flight operations, which oversaw another scandal-plagued program called Quiet Skies that secretly surveilled Americans on flights in the name of preventing terrorism. Hundreds of Americans, including then Hawaii Congresswoman Gabbard, were put on a watchlist and deemed threats to national security for holding political views against the Biden administration. In fact, Gabbard was added to the Quiet Skies program on July 23, 2024, one day after she criticized the Biden administration in an interview. The Trump administration ended the Quiet Skies program over the summer and in the fall a Senate Homeland Security committee confirmed the Biden administration weaponized the watch list against everyday Americans, deeming them threats to national security simply for holding opposing political views. As Executive Director of Flight Operations in 2023, Potapov oversaw Quiet Skies and all global FAMS deployments, making him a strange choice to help lead the agency.
In an internal memo announcing Potapov as his number two guy, FAMS Director Brian C. Belcher fails to mention his sordid past, instead promoting him as 23-year FAMS veteran who has demonstrated “exceptional leadership and dedication to our mission of safeguarding the nation’s transportation system.” Belcher also praises Potapov’s expertise and commitment to operational excellence that make him uniquely qualified to serve in this leadership position. The reality is much different, says David Londo, president of the Air Marshal National Council, who says many inside the agency are outraged. “His career provides a clear example of systemic breakdowns in federal accountability, leadership vetting, and taxpayer stewardship,” Londo said, pointing to Potapov’s court-confirmed misconduct, failures documented in federal audits, warnings from a congressional investigative unit and widespread internal concerns.
