The U.S. government now owns the $5.2 million Edward Snowden was paid for his book “Permanent Record” and dozens of speeches after his leak of highly classified information.
The Justice Department said Thursday it obtained a final judgment and permanent injunction against the former CIA employee and former contractor for the National Security Agency.
“Edward Snowden violated his legal obligations to the United States, and therefore, his unlawful financial gains must be relinquished to the government,” said Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen. “As this case demonstrates, the Department of Justice will not overlook the wrongful actions of those who seek to betray the trust reposed in them and to personally profit from their access to classified national security information.”
Snowden copied and leaked highly classified information from the NSA in 2013 when he was a CIA employee and subcontractor. He revealed global surveillance programs run by the NSA, igniting a cultural debate over issues of national security and individual privacy.
The government imposed a constructive trust for the benefit of the U.S. government over his profits and any further payments he may have arranged.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said intelligence information “should protect our nation, not provide personal profit.”
“This judgment will ensure that Edward Snowden receives no monetary benefits from breaching the trust placed in him,” he said.
This lawsuit is on top of criminal charges brought against Snowden for his alleged disclosures of classified information. The suit is focused on his failure to follow pre-publication procedures attached to his signed non-disclosure agreements.
The judgment was entered in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Last year, the U.S. brought the civil action against Snowden, alleging he published his book without submitting it to the security agencies for pre-publication review in violation of his express obligations under the agreements he signed.
The DOJ also charged Snowden with giving public speeches on intelligence-related matters in violation of his non-disclosure agreements.
Last winter, the court ruled in favor of the U.S. but reserved judgment on the scope of the violations or the remedies available to the government.
