Category Archives: NSA

The FBI said Wednesday that a suspect has been arrested in connection with a string of shootings near the nation's capital including around the National Security Agency.

Around 3 p.m. Tuesday, two men driving along the Maryland Intercounty Connector (ICC) near Interstate 95 were struck by bullets, according to NBC Washington. Their injuries were minor. About two hours later, there was a report of shots fired near the NSA headquarters in Fort Meade. No one was injured in that incident.

It was initially unclear if the two incidents were linked, but the FBI early Wednesday connected the shootings.

"We believe the subject responsible for shooting incidents on the ICC, near Fort Meade Army installation and other locations around the Baltimore-Washington metro area in the last two weeks is in custody," the FBI said in a statement early Wednesday. It did not provide further details.

The National Security Agency (NSA) headquarters in Fort Meade, Maryland.

First published March 4 2015, 1:34 AM

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NSA Shooting Suspect in Custody: FBI

Fort Meade, Md. A person believed responsible for shootings along highways over the last two weeks in the Baltimore-Washington area, including shots that damaged a National Security Agency building, is in custody, the FBI said early Wednesday.

The FBI believes the person in custody is responsible for shootings along Maryland highways, including one near the Fort Meade Army installation, which is home to the NSA, FBI spokeswoman Amy Thoreson said in a statement. She said no other information was available early Wednesday.

A person was taken into custody in Anne Arundel County on Tuesday night, county police said in a statement posted on Facebook on Wednesday morning from a verified account.

The Baltimore Sun first reported thatlate Tuesday that authorities were exploring a connection between five incidents in Anne Arundel, Prince George's and Howard counties, including four in the past two days. At least two people suffered non-life-threatening injuriesin one of the incidents.

Law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation, who asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to speak about the case, said surveillance video shows what appears to be the same blue or gray Lincoln Town Car near some of the crime scenes.

In two incidents Tuesday afternoon, someone fired on a truck on the Inter-County Connector in Prince George's County, and one person was taken to the hospital after being injured by broken glass. Later in the afternoon and about 12 miles away, there was a report of shots fired along the Baltimore-Washington Parkway in Anne Arundel County; the NSA reported damage to a building nearby. No injuries were reported.

There have been several similar incidents recently in the Baltimore-Washington area and police had said they were investigating if they were linked.

On Feb. 24, a man was injured by breaking glass when his vehicle was fired on near Arundel Mills Mall in Anne Arundel. And early Monday, Howard County police responded to reports of shots fired outside the AMC Theatre at The Mall in Columbia.

In the Arundel Mills case, Anne Arundel County police on Saturday released a compilation of surveillance videos that showed a dark Lincoln Town Car they believed may have been involved.

The first of Tuesday's shootings was reported about 2:40 p.m., when a truck with two people inside was struck by gunfire, according to Prince George's County Police. One person was treated at a local hospital for injuries caused by shattering glass and released. Investigators recovered a bullet fragment from the clothing of the other person in the truck, police said.

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FBI captures suspect in Maryland highway and NSA shootings

FORT MEADE, Md. A person believed responsible for shootings along highways over the last two weeks in the Baltimore-Washington area, including shots that damaged a National Security Agency building, is in custody, the FBI said early Wednesday.

The FBI believes the person in custody is responsible for shootings along Maryland highways, including one near the Fort Meade Army installation, which is home to the NSA, FBI spokeswoman Amy Thoreson said in a statement. She said no other information was available early Wednesday.

A person was taken into custody in Anne Arundel County on Tuesday night, county police said in a statement posted on Facebook on Wednesday morning from a verified account.

In two incidents Tuesday afternoon, someone fired on a truck on the Inter-County Connector in Prince Georges County, and one person was taken to the hospital after being injured by broken glass. Later in the afternoon and about 12 miles away, there was a report of shots fired along the Baltimore-Washington Parkway in Anne Arundel County; the NSA reported damage to a building nearby. No injuries were reported.

There have been several similar incidents recently in the Baltimore-Washington area and police had said they were investigating if they were linked.

On Feb. 24, a man was injured by breaking glass when his vehicle was fired on near Arundel Mills Mall in Anne Arundel. And early Monday, Howard County police responded to reports of shots fired outside the AMC Theatre at The Mall in Columbia.

In the Arundel Mills case, Anne Arundel County police on Saturday released a compilation of surveillance videos that showed a dark Lincoln Town Car they believed may have been involved.

The first of Tuesdays shootings was reported about 2:40 p.m., when a truck with two people inside was struck by gunfire, according to Prince Georges County police. One person was treated at a local hospital for injuries caused by shattering glass and released. Investigators recovered a bullet fragment from the clothing of the other person in the truck, police said.

In response to questions about the report later of shots fired near the NSA and building damage, the surveillance agency issued a short statement Tuesday: The investigation referenced is ongoing. No injuries to NSA personnel have been reported. State and local authorities are investigating, along with NSA Police. Spokesman Ian Brennan declined to comment further.

A portion of the parkway, a scenic but heavily traveled commuter route, was closed Tuesday while police investigated.

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Suspect in custody in NSA shooting in Maryland

Story highlights Hong Young, 35, is under police guard at a hospital, police said He is charged with attempted first-degree murder, assault and other charges

Officers stopped Hong Young, 35, of Beltsville, Maryland, at around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. The officers recognized Hong's vehicle -- a 1999 Lincoln Town Car -- as matching authorities' description of a car seen in surveillance footage near some of the shootings.

A gun in the car matched evidence found at the shootings, authorities said at a press conference, and Young was arrested.

Young is in the hospital and under police guard, though when reporters asked why he was being treated, officials would only say he was arrested without incident.

He is charged with attempted first-degree murder, first- and second-degree assault, weapons violations and reckless endangerment.

Young worked as a correctional officer at a Jessup facility from 2012 until his resignation in 2014, Maryland Secretary of Public Safety Stephen Moyer said. There was nothing significant in his employee file, Moyer said.

Police said that there are no links to terrorism, and no motive has been determined.

No one was killed in the five shooting incidents, four of which occurred Monday and Tuesday, according to police reports.

-- February 24 in Hanover, Maryland. a man who had stopped at a Costco said a man pulled up beside him in a Lincoln Town Car at 7:30 a.m. and began firing at him. The victim's vehicle was hit several times and the victim was grazed. The assailant drove away.

-- March 2 in Laurel, Maryland. Police received a call at 2:50 a.m. that shots had been fired at a Walmart. There were no damages or injuries.

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Shots fired near NSA

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Chomsky on Snowden Why NSA Surveillance Doesn #39;t Stop Terror While the U.S. Drone War Creates It
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NSA whistleblower Thomas Drake denounced a plea bargain reached by former CIA Director David Petraeus and federal prosecutors, calling it a slap on the wrist for illegal actions served no public good.

On Tuesday, court documents revealed the extent of Petraeus security breaches, which included sharing classified information with his biographer and paramour Paula Broadwell and lying to federal agents about his actions.

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Petraeus lawyers negotiated a deal that would give the retired general two years probation and pay a $40,000 fine, but would keep him out of prison entirely. A federal judge could still change his ultimate sentence and put him behind bars for up to one year.

The governments message is clear, Drake said in a statement. [W]histleblowing in the public interest will be punished, while disclosing classified information devoid of public value will get you a pass.

Drake was indicted under the Espionage Act for allegedly revealing information about the NSAs Trailblazer monitoring project to a reporter, as well as to a staffer in Congress. He was also charged with obstructing justice and making false statements.

Ultimately, after years of legal proceedings, the federal government dropped the charges against Drake and agreed not to seek jail time if he plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge.

The statement was relayed to POLITICO by the Government Accountability Project, a Washington, DC-based non-profit.

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NSA whistleblower denounces Petraeus plea bargain

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Updated at 11:47 PM EST on Tuesday, Mar 3, 2015

A suspect believed to be responsible for the separate shooting incidents on the ICC and near the NSA at Fort Meade, as well as other locations in the DC-Baltimore area over the last two weeks, is in custody, FBI Public Affairs Specialist Amy J. Thoreson said in a statement early Wednesday.

Late Tuesday evening, WBAL-TV in Baltimore reported shootings in Howard, Prince George's and Anne Arundel counties during the past week may be related.

A man was grazed by a bullet in Hanover last week, and Anne Arundel County Police had released surveillance video of a possible suspect vehicle.

Two shootings were reported Monday; one at a Wal-Mart in Laurel and another near an AMC Theater in Columbia.

Around 3 p.m. Tuesday, two men driving along the Maryland Intercounty Connector (ICC) near Interstate 95 were struck by bullets, likely fired from nearby woods. Both are expected to be OK.

About two hours later, U.S. Park Police investigated a report of shots fired near the National Security Agency's headquarters in Fort Meade.

Report of Shots Fired Near NSA Headquarters, Building Damaged U.S. Park Police are investigating a report of shots fired near the National Security Agency's headquarters Tuesday evening. News4's Darcy Spencer reports. (Published Tuesday, Mar 3, 2015)

A spokesperson for the police said the NSA is investigating damage to one of its buildings that appeared to be from gunshots. No one was injured.Throughout the evening, Park Police closed down sections of BW Parkway for their investigation.

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Shooting Near NSA, Four Others May Be Linked: Officials

The approval will be the last before the relevant statute in the Patriot Act comes up for renewal

A U.S. secret court has extended until June 1 the controversial bulk collection of private phone records of Americans by the National Security Agency.

The government said it had asked for reauthorization of the program as reform legislation, called the USA Freedom Act, was stalled in Congress. The bill would require telecommunications companies rather than the NSA to hold the bulk data, besides placing restrictions on the search terms used to retrieve the records.

An added urgency for Congress to act comes from the upcoming expiry on June 1 of the relevant part of the Patriot Act that provides the legal framework for the bulk data collections. Under a so-called "sunset" clause, the provision will lapse unless it is reauthorized in some form or the other by legislation.

Section 215 of the Patriot Act, which relates to business records, was used by the government to vacuum telephone metadata from customers of Verizon, according to revelations in 2013 by former NSA contractor, Edward Snowden. The section comes bundled with "gag orders" that prohibit service providers from making such information demands public.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court had previously extended in December the authorization for the program by 90 days after the USA Freedom Act, backed by the administration of President Barack Obama, failed to pass in the Senate. A version of the bill had passed the House of Representatives.

The government has now sought renewal of the current program up to June 1 in order to align its expiry date with the sunset on the same day of Section 215 of the Patriot Act, according to a joint statement by the Department of Justice and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Friday.

In March last year, as part of his reform program for the NSA, Obama had proposed that the data should remain with the telephone companies, and government would have access to that data only through individual court orders. The president, however, said there was need for new legislation to put these changes into effect.

With Section 215 and two other key rules set to lapse on June 1, Congress "has a limited window" before the sunset to enact new legislation "that would implement the President's proposed path forward for the telephony metadata program, while preserving key intelligence authorities," according to a statement by the White House press secretary.

A number of civil rights and privacy groups have asked Congress to oppose reauthorization of Section 215, one of several provisions in U.S. law that have provided the legal backing for NSA surveillance of people both in the country and abroad. The sunset of section 215 may not end bulk records collection, particularly of investigations that started before the expiry, according to some interpretations. Government could also use other statutes for domestic bulk data collection.

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NSA authorization to collect bulk phone data extended to June 1

Loretta Lynch: NSA spying is "certainly constitutional and effective"

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