Iran spy Daniel Khalife branded a ‘dangerous fool’ as he’s jailed for 14 years

Former worker Daniel Khalife was dubbed an ‘attention-seeker’ and ‘dangerous fool’ arsenic helium was sentenced to 14 years successful situation for spying for Iran and escaping from situation astatine Woolwich Crown Court today.

Khalife, 23, was serving successful the British Army erstwhile helium ‘exposed subject unit to superior harm’ by collecting delicate accusation and passing it to agents of the Middle Eastern country.

He was paid successful currency for the concealed accusation and told handlers helium would enactment successful the subject for 25-plus years for them.

In total, helium was sentenced to 14 years and 3 months successful prison, connected 3 counts.

In September 2023, Khalife escaped from class B situation HMP Wandsworth, successful south-west London, by clinging to the underside of a nutrient transportation truck.

He was caught connected a canal towpath by a plainclothes detective days later, but not earlier flights were grounded arsenic the hunt for him continued.

After his arrest, helium told the officer: ‘I didn’t deliberation small Susie trying to spell to Ibiza is gonna get her level cancelled… That was not to plan.’

Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC told Woolwich Crown Court: ‘The absorption of the authorities is indicative of the level of nationalist concern.’

The tribunal besides heard his flight outgo the constabulary implicit £250,000 successful overtime, arsenic much than 150 officers were tasked with uncovering him astatine 1 point.

In November, jurors astatine Woolwich Crown Court recovered that Khalife had breached the Official Secrets Act and the Terrorism Act.

Prosecutors said Khalife played ‘a cynical game’, claiming helium wanted a vocation arsenic a treble cause to assistance the British quality services, erstwhile successful information helium gathered ‘a precise ample assemblage of restricted and classified material’.

He was cleared of carrying retired a weaponry hoax and had already admitted during his proceedings to escaping from Wandsworth prison.

Police described Khalife arsenic the ‘ultimate Walter Mitty quality that was having a important interaction connected the existent world’.

He joined the Army successful 2018, 2 weeks earlier his 17th birthday, and served with the Royal Corps of Signals.

In 2021, Khalife secretly gathered the names of serving soldiers, including those successful the peculiar forces. He took a photograph of a handwritten database of 15 of them, having been sent an interior spreadsheet of promotions successful June 2021.

He travelled to Istanbul astatine 1 point, a destination the tribunal heard was chosen to not ‘arouse suspicion’.

Prosecutors believed helium sent the database to Iran earlier deleting immoderate evidence. After his arrest, helium told constabulary helium had wanted to connection himself to UK information agencies each along, having emailed MI6 arsenic aboriginal arsenic 2019.

Khalife told jurors helium wanted to beryllium bosses incorrect aft being told his Iranian practice could halt him from moving successful subject intelligence, and came up with his elaborate treble cause crippled aft watching the TV spy thriller Homeland.

In November 2021, helium made an anonymous telephone to the MI5 nationalist reporting line, confessing to having been successful interaction with Iran for much than 2 years.

He offered to assistance the British information services and said helium wanted to instrumentality to his mean life.

Defending Khalife during his trial, Gul Nawaz Hussain KC said the treble cause crippled was ‘hapless’ and ‘sometimes bordering connected the slapstick’, much Scooby-Doo than James Bond oregon Homeland.

Prosecutors said Khalife prepared a weaponry hoax astatine his Staffordshire barracks successful January 2023, but the proceedings heard however a worker who arrived successful the country pulled wires retired of the instrumentality to beryllium it was not real.

A weaponry disposal portion was called aft constabulary attended and looked astatine the instrumentality respective days later.

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