British security guard, 57, is extradited from Germany and charged under the Official Secrets Act

A British security guard has been extradited from Germany to London and charged with nine offences under the Official Secrets Act.    

David Smith, 57, is suspected of spying for Russia and will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.

The alleged offences are said to have been committed between October 2020 and August last year, when Smith was working at the British Embassy in Berlin. 

The nine charges relate to the collection and communication of information useful to the Russian state, according to the Metropolitan Police.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Smith, originally from Scotland, was arrested last August and has been held in German custody until an extradition order was secured last month. 

The newspaper reports that the material allegedly passed was classified below secret level and allegedly included names of British officials entering and leaving the embassy.

David Smith (pictured) has been extradited from Germany to London and charged with nine offences under the Official Secrets Act relating to passing information to a foreign state

A statement from the Met Police added: ‘A man is due in court charged with Official Secrets Act offences, following an investigation that is being led by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command.

‘David Ballantyne Smith, 57, a British national who was living in Potsdam, Germany, is charged with nine offences under the Official Secrets Act 1911.  

‘Smith, who was employed as a security guard at the British Embassy in Berlin, was extradited back to the UK from Germany on Wednesday following his arrest by German police on 10 August 2021.’ 

Prior to working at the embassy, it is understood Smith worked for Caledonian Airways while he lived in Scotland.

When he moved to Germany, he then worked as part of the Germany Guard Service – who were contracted by Britain’s Ministry of Defence to patrol Bielefeld military garrison until 2015.

The Crown Prosecution Service said that one of the charges faced by Smith relates to allegations he passed information to a person he believed was a representative of the Russian state.

Smith was arrested by German police at his apartment in Potsdam on August 10 last year

David Smith is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on Thursday to face charges

Nick Price, Head of Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division at the CPS, said: ‘David Smith has been charged with nine offences contrary to the Official Secrets Act.

‘He is accused of seven offences of collecting information with the intent of sending it to the Russian authorities, one of attempting communication and one of providing information to a person he believed was a member of the Russian authorities.

‘After reviewing the case and authorising charges, we obtained an extradition warrant and worked closely with our German counterparts in order to bring Mr Smith back to the UK.’ 

The Telegraph reports that Mr Smith’s lawyers had attempted to fight the extradition in December as he left the UK 16 years ago and now considers Germany his home country.

Smith, who was born in the Scottish town of Paisley in July 1964, will appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on Thursday.