In this role, Young investigated information leaks within the Nixon administration, ultimately being jointly responsible with Egil Krogh for the founding of the White House Special Investigations Unit, subsequently known as "The Plumbers" ("We stop leaks").

[3] E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy, of the Plumbers unit, participated in clandestine (later established to be illegal) activities, the most notorious being the attempted 1971 burglary of the offices of Daniel Ellsberg's former psychiatrist and the attempted 1972 burglary of the Democratic National Committee offices at the Watergate complex.

During the investigation of these attempted burglaries, Young was granted limited immunity on the motion of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (the "Senate Watergate Investigation Committee") and the approval of United States District Judge John J. Sirica, on July 5, 1973.

However, in return for immunity, Young testified for the prosecution in the trial of Ehrlichman and The Plumbers team that broke into the office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist.

Young admitted under oath that he had deleted and removed incriminating evidence from some copies of White House files in December 1972.