FBI secretly arrest Harold Thomas Martin III, National Security Agency contractor for suspected theft of confidential codes
Former National Security Agency contractor Harold T. Martin III, 51, secretly arrested by FBI in Glen Burnie, Md
Criminal complaint filed in late August alleges he stole confidential codes
Martin has been charged with theft of government property and unauthorized removal or retention of classified documents.
FBI raided his house, seized paper and digital information stored on electronic devices, large percentage of materials found in home and car contained highly classified information.
Admits knowingly taking classified documents and digital files from his work assignment to his residence and vehicle
Martin worked at the same contracting firm that employed Edward Snowden before his 2013 leak
Faces 1 year for unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, 10 years for theft of stolen property
51-year-old Thomas Martin III allegedly stole codes capable of hacking into foreign government networks, a breach that could “cause exceptionally grave damage” to national security, according to sources.
Authorities revealed,Wednesday,that the FBI arrested Harold Thomas Martin III without fanfare in connection with the crime, in recent weeks. Martin, 51, of Glen Burnie, MD, has been in custody since his first court appearance in August.
DOJ statement on arrest of Howard Thomas Martin III
High level sources say the arrested contractor worked for the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton, the same firm that employed yet to be apprehended whistleblower Edward Snowden. The firm, a major player in the information technology field, is responsible for building and operating many of the agency’s most sensitive cyberoperations. Snowden himself, is currently in exile in Moscow after leaking classified U.S. National Security Agency documents, in 2013 after fleeing the country to Hong Kong.
The National Security Agency campus, MD
According to a statement from the Department of Justice, investigators executing search warrants of Martin’s Maryland property on Aug. 27, uncovered hard-copies of documents and digital information stored on various devices in his home, sheds on his property, vehicle and his person.
The criminal complaint notes that much of the allegedly stolen property recovered in his possession was clearly marked as U.S government property . Investigators also turned up property valued at more than $1,000 at Martin’s residence and vehicle, according to the complaint.
Martin having agreed to be interviewed “at first denied” the theft allegations. However, after he was confronted with the specific documents, he later admitted he took documents and digital files from his work assignment to his residence and vehicle that he knew were classified,” according to the complaint .
Edward Snowdon the infamous whistleblower now on exile in Russia and Howard Thomas Martin III both worked at Booz Allen Hamilton, the contracting firm responsible for building and operating many of the agency’s most sensitive cyberoperations
Through interviews with someone “designated as an original classification authority,” investigators determined that the allegedly stolen information is classified as Top Secret, “meaning that unauthorized disclosure reasonably could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security of the U.S.”
Addressing a cybersecurity panel, Wednesday Assistant Attorney General for National Security Justice, John Carlin, confirmed an arrest of “an individual who’s involved in taking classified information.” He said the arrest highlights the threats posed by insiders.
John Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, addressed the issue of security concerns among insiders, Wednesday
Sources also say however, the information allegedly stolen by Mr. Martin appears to be different in nature from Mr. Snowden’s theft. Snowden leaked tens of thousands of NSA documents in 2013 and revealed that the government agency was collecting telephone records of millions of Americans.
Snowden fled to Hong Kong before revealing the documents, calling himself a whistleblower. He is currently exiled in Russia and has petitioned for a presidential pardon, on the grounds that U.S. citizens benefitted from his disclosure of the secret government surveillance program.
The Martin complaint charges the former contractor with unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, which carries a maximum one-year sentence in addition to theft of stolen property, an offense punishable by up to 10 years.
This is quite alarming. There are a couple of folks out there who is really computer and tech savvy and they can break into anyone’s system easily. Good thing we have the proper authorities to do this. I remember a friend who suffer from the same issue. We asked Wase, Wase & Grace to handle this concern for him. And they did a very good job. You can check them out here if you’d like. Thanks for this article. Worth sharing!