Who is Edward Snowden?

A 29-year-old government contractor has been charged with espionage for recent leaks of classified intelligence. He has vaulted from obscurity to international notoriety, joining the ranks of high-profile leakers such as Daniel Ellsberg of Pentagon Papers fame.

1. The leak
Edward Snowden, a contract worker for the National Security Agency, revealed on June 9 that he was the source of the leaks to The Washington Post and the Guardian of information about the U.S. government’s vast collection of phone and Internet data. The United States charged Snowden with espionage on June 21 and asked the Hong Kong government to detain him on a provisional arrest warrant.

Guardian via AP

2. His first refuge
Snowden was reportedly staying at the Mira Hotel in Hong Kong before checking out on Sunday. He said he would seek asylum outside the United States, but according to experts, Hong Kong would be a questionable choice. The semiautonomous jurisdiction has a strong extradition treaty with the United States.

Alex Hofford / European Pressphoto Agency

3. Glenn Greenwald
Glenn Greenwald, a reporter for the British-based Guardian newspaper, speaks to the Associated Press in Hong Kong. Greenwald’s report last week exposed the U.S. government's widespread collection of phone data. Greenwald, in the Guardian, and Barton Gellman, in The Washington Post, later reported on the PRISM program, in which the U.S. government has collected Internet data from major U.S. technology firms. Edward Snowden later revealed himself to be the source for those stories.

Vincent Yu / AP

4. The solo trip
Snowden’s girlfriend, Lindsay Mills, 28, said she was in shock over Snowden's sudden departure last month from Hawaii for Hong Kong.

Kin Cheung / AP

5. His employer

Snowden was an employee of the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton, where he worked as a contractor for the NSA. The company announced Tuesday that he had been fired. Booz Allen said Snowden was paid $122,000 a year for his work as a systems administrator, substantially less than the $200,000 a year he had claimed.

Michael Reynolds / European Pressphoto Agency


5. His employer

Snowden was an employee of the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton, where he worked as a contractor for the NSA. The company announced Tuesday that he had been fired. Booz Allen said Snowden was paid $122,000 a year for his work as a systems administrator, substantially less than the $200,000 a year he had claimed.

Michael Reynolds / European Pressphoto Agency


7. Already gone

The home where Edward Snowden apparently lived with his girlfriend in the Honolulu neighborhood of Waipahu. They moved to Hawaii last year. Neighbors said Snowden rebuffed their overtures and provided no personal information.

Kent Nishimura / European Pressphoto Agency


8. Icelandic dreams?

In an interview, Snowden floated the idea of heading to Reykjavik. He told the Guardian that he was inclined to seek asylum in a country that shared his values — and “the nation that most encompasses this is Iceland.”

Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP

9. Early interests

Snowden is seen in 2002 wearing a hoodie when he worked as a webmaster and editor for a Japanese anime company run by friends in Maryland.

katiebair.com / via Reuters

10. High school dropout

Snowden’s sophomore yearbook photo from Arundel Senior High School in 1999. He dropped out after the first semester of his sophomore year.

Courtesy of Arundel Senior High School

11. Where he went to school

Snowden first grew up in North Carolina, but then he and his family moved to Maryland and lived in Anne Arundel County, where he went to school.

Jonathan Newton / The Washington Post

12. Childhood home

Snowden and his family lived at 1419 Knights Bridge Turn in Crofton, Md.

Jonathan Newton / The Washington Post

13. Snowden reportedly lands in Moscow

Russian journalists meet passengers from an Aeroflot flight from Hong Kong as they land in Moscow. Snowden fled Hong Kong for Moscow on Sunday with the help of the anti-secrecy organization WikiLeaks, according to Russian media reports and a WikiLeaks spokesman. Snowden’s ultimate destination is unknown, but Ecuador’s foreign minister tweeted that his government had received a request for asylum from him.

Igor Kharitonov / European Pressphoto Agency