Ex NSA Contractor Stole 500 Million Pages Of Sensitive US Records Over 20 Years

Former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Harold Martin III has stolen 500 million pages of US government records over 20 years, including details of secret military activities, the US department of Justice stated in a court filing.

The defendant violated that trust by engaging in wholesale theft of classified government documents and property throughout his government assignments. It is "a course of felonious conduct that is breathtaking in its longevity and scale," the 12-page filing released on Thursday, various media reported Thursday.

Martin, 51, worked for Booz Allen Hamilton management firm as an NSA contractor. He was arrested in August and charged with theft of government property and unauthorized removal or retention of classified documents.

In all, Martin stole 500 million pages of information, the equivalent of 50 terabytes of information, or enough to fill 200 lap top computers, the chargers said.

“six full banker’s boxes worth of documents, with many lying open in his home office or kept on his car’s back seat and in the trunk. Other material was stored in a shed on his property,” U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein and two other prosecutors had mentioned in the memo.

The prosecutors also said Martin had an “arsenal” of weapons in his home and car, including an assault-rifle-style tactical weapon and a pistol-grip shotgun with a flash suppressor. The filing said Martin may face additional charges, including violating the US Espionage Act.

Though he lacks a valid US passport, the government said Martin could still flee to a foreign government that might help him. “He has communicated with unnamed people in Russian and in June downloaded information on Russian and other languages,” Prosecutors said.

On the contrary, Martin’s lawyers claim his client is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that compelled him to hoard the documents.