Ex-CIA employee convicted last year in massive info theft now guilty of possessing images of child abuse

• Last year, former CIA employee Joshua Schulte was convicted of releasing a trove of agency secrets through WikiLeaks in 2017.
• The convicted software engineer was convicted again yesterday on charges of possessing thousands of child sexual abuse images in encrypted areas of his home desktop computer.
• Schulte, whose sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 10, could face decades in prison for both convictions.

A former CIA software engineer already convicted in the biggest theft of classified information in CIA history was convicted Wednesday on charges of possessing child sexual abuse images.

A jury returned its verdict in Manhattan federal court against Joshua Schulte after prosecutors presented proof that Schulte had over 3,000 images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children as young as age 2 hidden in encrypted areas of his home desktop computer.

At sentencing scheduled for Jan. 10, Schulte could face decades in prison for Wednesday's conviction along with his conviction last year on charges that he released a trove of CIA secrets through WikiLeaks in 2017.

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In New York, Joshua Schulte, a former CIA software engineer convicted in a massive leak of classified information, was found guilty of possessing over 3,000 images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of young children.

The so-called Vault 7 leak revealed how the CIA hacked Apple and Android smartphones in overseas spying operations, and efforts to turn internet-connected televisions into listening devices. Prior to his arrest, Schulte had helped create the hacking tools as a coder at the agency’s headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

A mistrial was declared at Schulte’s original 2020 trial after jurors deadlocked on the most serious counts, including illegal gathering and transmission of national defense information.

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Schulte, 34, has been held behind bars without bail since 2018.

In a release, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: "Joshua Schulte has already been held accountable for endangering our nation’s security, and today’s verdict holds him accountable for endangering our nation’s children as well."

A lawyer for Schulte declined comment.

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