London (Daily Pakistan Online) A former security guard of the British embassy in Berlin, who confessed to spying for Russia, has been sentenced to over 13 years in prison under the Official Secrets Act.
According to news agency AFP, 58-year-old David Ballantyne Smith was caught in a sting operation after delivering sensitive material to the Russian embassy in Germany. Announcing the sentence of 13 years and two months at the Old Bailey court in central London, Judge Mark Wall said: ‘You were paid by Russia for your treason. Your purpose in helping them (the Russians) was to harm British interests.’
The judge, who had previously rejected Smith’s claims that he had only twice provided information to Moscow to cause ’embarrassment’ for Britain, described his offending as ‘extensive and serious’ and said That he showed no real remorse. The judge told Smith that his guilt was ‘overwhelming’, as he had copied ‘significant material over the years’ and had put embassy staff at risk of harm.
The suspect is a retired soldier from Paisley, West Scotland, who had worked at the Berlin embassy for five years. Prosecutors previously said Smith first wrote to the Russian embassy in 2020, revealing details of British embassy staff and suggesting further contact.
