Operation Snow White

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Grand Jury Charges, Introduction, United States of America v. Mary Sue Hubbard, United States District Court for the District of Columbia, 1979

Operation Snow White was a criminal conspiracy by the Church of Scientology during the 1970s to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard. This project included a series of infiltrations into and thefts from 136 government agencies, foreign embassies and consulates, as well as private organizations critical of Scientology, carried out by Church members in more than 30 countries.[1] It was one of the largest infiltrations of the United States government in history,[2] with up to 5,000 covert agents.[3] This operation also exposed the Scientology plot "Operation Freakout", because Operation Snow White was the case that initiated the U.S. government's investigation of the Church.[3]

Under this program, Scientology operatives committed infiltration, wiretapping, and theft of documents in government offices, most notably those of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. Eleven highly placed Church executives, including Mary Sue Hubbard (third wife of founder L. Ron Hubbard and second-in-command of the organization), pleaded guilty and were convicted in federal court of obstructing justice, burglary of government offices, and theft of documents and government property. The case was United States v. Mary Sue Hubbard et al., 493 F.Supp. 209 (D.D.C. 1979).[4][5][6][7]

  1. ^ Labaton, Stephen (October 14, 1993). "Scientologists Granted Tax Exemption by the U.S." The New York Times. p. 1. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
  2. ^ Ortega, Tony (December 23, 1999). "Double Crossed". Phoenix New Times. Archived from the original on October 2, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Religion: Mystery of the Vanished Ruler". TIME. January 31, 1983. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  4. ^ "United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia against Mary Sue Hubbard, Henning Heldt, Jane Kember et al". Archived from the original on May 9, 2008.
  5. ^ "Mary Sue Hubbard et al. Sentencing Memorandum - corrected". Archived from the original on December 2, 2007.
  6. ^ "Timeline of Scientology versus the IRS".
  7. ^ wikisource:U.S. v. Hubbard 650 F.2d 293 (1981)