Former Twitter Worker Found Guilty of Spying For Saudi Arabia

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman speaks during the Jeddah Security and Development Summit (GCC+3) at a hotel in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah on July 16, 2022. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

A federal jury has convicted a former employee at Twitter for transmitting user information on behalf of Saudi Arabia and its royal family.

Ahmad Abouammo, 44, worked for Twitter as a Media Partnerships Manager for the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region between November 2013 and May 2015. The evidence submitted during his trial showed that Abouammo took bribes from the Saudis to access, monitor, and convey private information of certain Twitter users to officials of the kingdom. When questioned about these activities, Abouammo falsified a document and lied to FBI officials.