Security Guard of British Embassy in Berlin charged with spying for Russia

A British embassy security guard in Berlin has been accused with spying for Russia. David Ballantyne Smith, 57, is charged with nine counts of violating the Official Secrets Act.

He faces seven counts of gathering information with the goal of delivering it to Russian officials, one count of attempting communication, and one count of supplying information to a person he believed to be a Russian state representative.

Mr. Smith was arrested on suspicion of gathering information from the embassy with the goal of transferring it to a foreign government by German police on August 10 last year.

After getting the attorney general’s consent, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) stated it worked with the Metropolitan Police to establish a prosecution case and authorized charges on November 15th.

Mr. Smith, who was living in Potsdam, Germany at the time, was extradited to the UK on Wednesday and will appear in Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.

The nine alleged offences were committed between October 31, 2020, and August 10, 2021, under the Official Secrets Act 1911 and the Official Secrets Act 1920.

“Criminal proceedings against the defendant are ongoing, and he has the right to a fair trial,” a representative for the CPS said.

“It is critical that there be no online reporting, commenting, or sharing of anything that could jeopardise these proceedings in any way”, he added.