Snowden's dad worries about son's ties to WikiLeaks

Kevin Johnson and Doug Stanglin | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Snowden's dad: My son is no traitor Edward Snowden's father says his son may have betrayed the U.S. government, but he hasn't betrayed the American people.

Lonnie Snowden believes WikiLeaks is using his son for fundraising purposes

Snowden said he has not spoken with his son since Edward left the country

His attorney sent Eric Holder a letter offering Edward%27s return if his rights would be protected

WASHINGTON — The father of Edward Snowden, the former defense contractor accused of disclosing details about secret U.S. surveillance programs, is concerned that his son's recent association with the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks is being used by its founder Julian Assange to raise the organization's public profile for fundraising purposes.

Attorney Bruce Fein, who represents Lonnie Snowden, said Friday that Snowden's father is worried that the legal counsel and travel expenses provided by WikiLeaks are part the plan to "keep (Edward Snowden) from doing the right thing" by returning to the USA to confront the espionage charges filed against him.

"They are using him to raise money," Fein said in an interview with USA TODAY.

Assange and WikiLeaks representatives have acknowledged that they are financing Snowden's efforts to seek asylum and his international travel to avoid arrest by the U.S. government.

The 30-year-old fugitive may still be in a Moscow airport transit area after fleeing Hong Kong on Sunday as U.S. authorities sought his extradition. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he will not extradite Snowden to the USA but also has not allowed Snowden to leave the airport transit area. Ecuador is considering a request from Snowden for political asylum.

In an unusual attempt to broker an agreement for Snowden's return, Fein sent a letter Thursday to Attorney General Eric Holder, stating that Snowden's father was reasonably confident he could arrange his son's return in exchange for "ironclad assurances his constitutional rights would be honored and he were provided a fair opportunity to explain his motivations and actions to an impartial judge and jury."

The content of the letter was first reported by NBC News.

In the letter, Fein asked that the government not detain Snowden before trial; that Snowden not be subject to a gag order, prohibiting him from speaking about the case; and that Snowden be tried in a venue of his choosing.

"With these written representations and guarantee, Mr. Snowden is reasonably confident that his son could be persuaded to surrender voluntarily to the jurisdiction of the United States to face trial," the letter states.

Justice Department spokeswoman Nanda Chitre said Friday that she was not aware the letter had been received. She declined further comment.

Lonnie Snowden sketched out the offer in an interview with NBC News investigative reporter Michael Isikoff that aired on the Today program Friday morning.

Snowden said he had not spoken with his son since Edward left the country last month and revealed classified information about the National Security Agency's surveillance and data-collection network.

"I love him. I would like to have the opportunity to communicate with him," he told NBC.

The elder Snowden said he doesn't feel that his son has, at this point, committed treason.

"He has in fact broken U.S. law, in a sense that he has released classified information," he told NBC News. "And if folks want to classify him as a traitor, in fact he has betrayed his government. But I don't believe that he's betrayed the people of the United States."

Snowden's father expressed concern about WikiLeaks. "I don't want to put him in peril, but I am concerned about those who surround him," he says. "I think WikiLeaks, if you've looked at past history, you know, their focus isn't necessarily the Constitution of the United States. It's simply to release as much information as possible."