David Ballantyne Smith

David Ballantyne Smith
Born	Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland
Military career
Service	Royal Air Force

David Ballantyne Smith is a British former security guard who was convicted of espionage on behalf of Russia.

Early life

David Ballantyne Smith was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland.^[1] Smith enlisted in the Royal Air Force in 1985 and served for 12 years which included a posting to the former Fighter Command headquarters at Bentley Priory.^[1] After leaving the RAF, he moved to Crawley, West Sussex and took a job as a flight auditor at Gatwick Airport, before leaving to work as a flight attendant, a position he kept until 2002.^[1]

Espionage

Smith pleaded guilty to eight offences under the Official Secrets Act on 4 November 2022.^[2] He was sentenced to 13 years and two months' imprisonment.^[3]

Following Smith's convictions, the Foreign Office carried out a security review of every member of embassy staff at a cost of £825,000.^[3]

References

1. Kirk, Tristan (17 February 2023). "David Smith: All we know about 'lonely' Russian spy with a grudge against Britain - and how he was caught". Evening Standard. ISSN 2041-4404. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
2. "British worker at UK embassy in Berlin pleads guilty to Russia spying charges". Reuters. London. 11 November 2022. Archived from the original on 2023-02-15. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
3. Symonds, Tom; Burns, Judith (17 February 2023). "Spy at UK's Berlin embassy jailed for selling secrets to Russia". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.