Berlin Embassy spy ‘hedged bets’ during sting op with fake Russian officer
David Ballantyne Smith began collecting secret information from the embassy where he worked as a security guard some four years before his arrest.
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails
Sign up to our free breaking news emails
Sign up to our free breaking news emails
A British embassy spy was “hedging his bets” when he was accosted by a fake Russian operative during an undercover sting, a court has heard.
David Ballantyne Smith, 58, began collecting secret information from the Berlin embassy where he worked as a security guard some four years before his arrest in August 2021.
He was snared in an undercover operation involving the deployment of two fake Russian operatives after he sent a letter in November 2020 to member of military staff at the Russian Embassy in Berlin.
The first undercover role player purported to be a “walk-in” Russian informant called “Dmitry” who Smith escorted into the British Embassy on August 5 2021.
Afterwards, Smith was captured on CCTV in his security kiosk filming the earlier footage of Dmitry wearing a flat cap and glasses.
On August 9, Smith was accosted in the street by a second role player “Irina”, who told him she was a Russian intelligence officer.
On a covert recording, Smith appeared cautious about engaging with her, saying he needed to speak to “someone” first.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said: “Irina was deployed to play the role of the GRU officer and to see whether someone – Dmitry – was providing information to the UK that could be damaging to Russia.
“He (Smith) is someone who has been engaging with the Russian authorities for some time.
“The prosecution allege he has been aware of the Dmitry incident and knows the potential significance of the Dmitry incident because he has taken the recordings with a view to passing that material on.
“So when he is presented with somebody who claims to be from the Russian authorities and inquires about it, the prosecution position is that the defendant was stalling in his engagement with Irina trying to work out as quickly as he could think about it what was the more likely – that this was a real Russian representative who he could trust to provide the information, even though Irina was plainly not the ‘someone’ who the defendant was ordinarily engaging with.”
The alternative possibility was that he had been “rumbled”, she said.
The defendant was plainly hedging his bets to seek whether or not he could trust her
Ms Morgan went on: “The defendant will assert he knew from the outset Irina was MI5 and further asserts he said that to her on the recording.”
But she said there were “no words” to that effect on audio played in court.
She said: “The defendant was plainly hedging his bets to seek whether or not he could trust her.
“This is a man who was plainly trying to work Irina out.
“The key line is he told Irina that he would have to check with ‘someone'”.
Ms Morgan added that when Irina showed him a picture of Dmitry he did not react at all.
Smith declined to be interviewed after German officers arrested him at 2.10pm on August 10 2021 in Potsdam in Germany.
Photographs taken of his flat included a large Russian Federation flag, various Russian books, a Soviet military hat, a Communist toy Lada car and a life-size cuddly Russian toy Rottweiler dog sporting a military hat.
On the shelves were various books on young female Russian snipers and soldiers who fought battles between Nazis and Soviets.
Items seized from his address included travel documents and sheets of blank embassy headed paper.
Smith’s work locker was also searched and items seized including a cartoon of Russian president Vladimir Putin in military garb holding the head of former German chancellor Angela Merkel.
The caption in German stated: “Russia, please free us once again.”
Smith, who is originally from Scotland, was extradited on April 6 last year and arrested on arrival at Heathrow Airport for offences under the Official Secrets Act.
In November last year, Smith pleaded guilty to eight charges under the Official Secrets Act by committing an act prejudicial to the safety or interests of the state.
The prosecution allege Smith held strong anti-UK views and was in favour of Russia and Putin.
An examination of his finances suggest he was receiving unaccounted for funds, including 800 euro in cash uncovered at his home in Potsdam.
At the Old Bailey hearing, Smith has denied leaking secrets to Russia for money and claimed he only intended to “inconvenience and embarrass” the embassy, where he had worked since 2016.
But the prosecution say his deliberate engagement with Russian authorities by providing them with confidential and sensitive information demonstrates an intent to harm UK interests.
Smith is due to be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday.