NSA provides details on crimes unrelated to terror

Washington --

The National Security Agency is handing the Justice Department information, derived from its secret electronic eavesdropping programs, about suspected criminal activity unrelated to terrorism.

The little-known byproduct of counterterrorism surveillance continues amid controversy over the NSA's wide-ranging collection of domestic communications intelligence, including Americans' telephone calling records and Internet use.

It is unclear whether the referrals have been built upon the content of telephone calls and e-mails. Administration officials have previously assured Congress that NSA surveillance focuses on metadata and does not delve into the content of individual calls or e-mail messages.

Current and former federal officials say NSA limits non-terrorism referrals to serious criminal activity inadvertently detected during domestic and foreign surveillance. The NSA referrals apparently have included cases of suspected human trafficking, sexual abuse and overseas bribery by U.S.-based corporations or foreign corporate rivals that violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

"If the intelligence agency uncovers evidence of any crime ranging from sexual abuse to FCPA, they tend to turn that information over to the Department of Justice," Robert Litt, general counsel for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, recently told an audience at the Brookings Institution. "But the Department of Justice cannot task the intelligence community to do that."

Transparency sought

Litt declined to discuss NSA referrals to the Justice Department when Hearst Newspapers asked about the practice after a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week.

The supersecret NSA surveillance disclosed by fugitive leaker Edward Snowden already has sparked a public outcry, congressional hearings and possible legislative intervention to limit the programs.

Litt's acknowledgement that the NSA is handing off intelligence to federal prosecutors could further stoke controversy and calls for action on Capitol Hill.

"If the information from surveillance or wiretaps is used by the NSA inconsistently with the warrant or other permission from the (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) court, certainly there would be a violation of law," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a former U.S. attorney and state attorney general. "Unfortunately we have no access to the FISA court opinions or orders that may authorize this activity because they're largely secret. This presents yet another clear and powerful reason that we need more transparency in the FISA court."

Not publicly reported

The number of NSA referrals to the Justice Department is not publicly reported to Congress. A former federal official who served in the top echelons of both Bush administrations said there have been as many as 20 to 30 NSA referrals of non-terrorism criminal activity to the Justice Department.

The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The Patriot Act enables the NSA to legally hand over information to the Justice Department about suspected criminal activity inadvertently derived from foreign intelligence surveillance, said Stewart Baker, a former general counsel for the NSA.

NSA surveillance overseas occasionally trips across evidence of violating international sanctions against countries such as Iran or companies violating antibribery laws in hopes of securing multimillion-dollar commercial or defense contracts.