(CNN)Brazilian prosecutors filed charges against American journalist Glenn Greenwald Tuesday, alleging he aided in cybercrimes and "helped, encouraged and oriented" hackers who tapped into the phones and messaging apps of some of the country's top officials.
The charges come following a series of stories published in 2019 by Greenwald's news site The Intercept, based on a trove of data that it said "provides unprecedented insight into the operations of the anti-corruption task force that transformed Brazilian politics and gained worldwide attention."
The stories included excerpts of phone messages from Justice Minister Sergio Moro, who led the task force before joining the government of Jair Bolsonaro in 2019.
According to the prosecutor's office, Greenwald, a Pulitzer prize winner, was not directly under investigation but said information found on one of the suspected hacker's computers showed him "giving guidance" and that he was being charged with assisting the group.
Six other people have been indicted in the so-called "Operation Spoofing" and are other investigation for illegal hacking.
Greenwald has only been charged, not indicted, and he will only respond to phone and computer hacking crimes, while the others will face crimes of money laundering, said the Federal Prosecutors.
Last year, a Supreme Court judge issued an injunction preventing Federal Police from investigating Greenwald following the publication of the stories.
Greenwald's response
Greenwald derided the accusations Tuesday, calling it "an obvious attempt to attack a free press in retaliation for the revelations" reported by The Intercept.
"Less than two months ago, after examining the same evidence cited today by Brazil's Public Ministry, the Federal Police stated that not only have I never committed any crimes in my contacts with our source, but also that I exercised extreme caution as a journalist," Greenwald said in a statement provided to CNN.
Greenwald added, "This new accusation — brought by the same prosecutor who just tried and failed to criminally prosecute the head of the Brazilian Bar Association for criticizing Minister Moro — is an obvious attempt to attack a free press in retaliation for the revelations we reported about Minister Moro and the Bolsonaro government."
The charges come following a series of stories published in 2019 by Greenwald's news site The Intercept, based on a trove of data that it said "provides unprecedented insight into the operations of the anti-corruption task force that transformed Brazilian politics and gained worldwide attention."
The stories included excerpts of phone messages from Justice Minister Sergio Moro, who led the task force before joining the government of Jair Bolsonaro in 2019.
According to the prosecutor's office, Greenwald, a Pulitzer prize winner, was not directly under investigation but said information found on one of the suspected hacker's computers showed him "giving guidance" and that he was being charged with assisting the group.
Six other people have been indicted in the so-called "Operation Spoofing" and are other investigation for illegal hacking.
Greenwald has only been charged, not indicted, and he will only respond to phone and computer hacking crimes, while the others will face crimes of money laundering, said the Federal Prosecutors.
Last year, a Supreme Court judge issued an injunction preventing Federal Police from investigating Greenwald following the publication of the stories.
Greenwald's response
Greenwald derided the accusations Tuesday, calling it "an obvious attempt to attack a free press in retaliation for the revelations" reported by The Intercept.
"Less than two months ago, after examining the same evidence cited today by Brazil's Public Ministry, the Federal Police stated that not only have I never committed any crimes in my contacts with our source, but also that I exercised extreme caution as a journalist," Greenwald said in a statement provided to CNN.
Greenwald added, "This new accusation — brought by the same prosecutor who just tried and failed to criminally prosecute the head of the Brazilian Bar Association for criticizing Minister Moro — is an obvious attempt to attack a free press in retaliation for the revelations we reported about Minister Moro and the Bolsonaro government."
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