Eric O'Neill

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Eric M. O'Neill is a former American FBI operative. He worked as an Investigative Specialist, of the Special Surveillance Group (SSG), and played a pivotal role in the arrest and life imprisonment conviction of his fellow agent, Robert Hanssen, for spying on behalf of the Soviet Union and Russia.

O'Neill graduated from Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. in 1991,^[1] and earned dual degrees in political science and psychology from Auburn University in 1995.^[2]

O'Neill was assigned to work as Hanssen's principal assistant; his true role, kept secret from Hanssen, was part of the effort to learn as much as possible about which secret information Hanssen had revealed, and to ensure a successful capture and prosecution of him. Ultimately, investigators made a dramatic move to obtain a "smoking gun", when others briefly disrupted Hanssen's routine and confidence, maneuvering him into relaxing his rigid control of his portable electronic memo-book.^[3] O'Neill, under intense time pressure, then secretly had its encrypted contents copied, and returned it apparently undetected. He describes himself as believing that, had Hanssen detected the disturbance of his device, he would have realized that all his hope of continued freedom was lost, and might have shot O'Neill dead on the spot.^[3]

Hanssen was arrested on February 18, 2001, at Foxstone Park near his home in Vienna, Virginia, charged with selling American secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds over a 15-year period. On July 6, 2001, he pled guilty to 15 counts of espionage.^[4][5] He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison. His treason has been described as "possibly the worst intelligence disaster in US history".^[6]

Following his FBI years, O'Neill earned a J.D. with Honors from The George Washington University Law School in 2003. He is admitted to the bars in Maryland and District of Columbia and is an associate at the law firm DLA Piper.^[7]

In the movie Breach, the part of O'Neill is played by Ryan Phillippe.

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