Speaking from his cell ahead of the sentence, he told the BBC his worst fear was being hanged but he also dreaded life imprisonment "in one of the worst jails in the world".

BBC: Danny Fitzsimons says 'only God' can judge him

Thomas Drake, who worked at the National Security Agency, was threatened with life imprisonment for leaking to the Baltimore Sun unclassified details of a wasteful programme that also impinged on privacy.

ECONOMIST: Government transparency: The best disinfectant | The