>> He didn’t receive anything of value from a foreign government <<
Maybe not. The law might be very unclear on the question.
For example, let’s say an Englishman emails you to say that he’d like for you to meet with a Russain who can supply some illegal drugs. You email back and request a rendez-vous, saying you’d love to meet the prospective drug dealer.
If the NSA or FBI then got hold of your emails, could the feds charge you with conspiracy to violate the drug laws — even if you never bought any drugs?
I just don’t know. But I sure wouldn’t wanna to be in that position!
A fair example for line drawing. Do illegal drugs have value? Yes. If you take possession of them, have you broken the law?
Now, change the offer to one where the Englishman tells you he has information that your business partner has been selling your business secrets. This is valuable too. are you breaking the law by taking possession of this information?
The legality or taint assocaites with the substance of what is being offered. Illegal drugs vs. evidence of unethical business practice. And to be fair, there is some infoamtion that is dangerous or illegal to possess, such as the detail drawings of warheads.
Is it illegal to possess information about Russian contributions to Hillary Clinton's campaign?