The committee heard testimony from two senior Central Intelligence Agency officials during the fifth day of the confirmation hearings for Robert Gates for the position of director of Central Intelligence. The two officials testified that Mr. Gates, deputy director of Central Intelligence during the mid-1980's, had been informed of the possibility of U.S. government agents being involved in a diversion of profits from sales of arms to Iran to the Contras in Central America, in contradiction to Mr. Gates' previous statements that the possibility of such a scheme had not been discussed with him. Mr. Kerr testified he spoke with Mr. Gates in August 1986 about the possibility of such a diversion scheme based on information from Mr. Allen. However, he said Mr. Gates' claim he did not recall the conversation may be true, given that the conversation lasted only a couple of minutes.