FORMER TEDDINGTON SCHOOL PUPIL FOUND GUILTY ON SPYING CHARGES

The conviction follows an investigation by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command which found he had been sharing sensitive military information with Iranian agents.

Daniel Khalife, 23, from Kingston, was found guilty at Woolwich Crown Court of espionage and terrorism offences.

Accounts in newspapers at the time of his arrest quoted a friend of Khalife as saying: “He was a very nice guy when he joined the school aged 11. He was the class clown, one of the funniest in the year, but he became a bit more into his shell.”

The reports added he was in the lower sets at school, and was described as a bit of a loner who sat at the back ‘swinging on his chair’, leaving with a ‘handful of GCSEs’ and joining the Army shortly afterwards.

Teddington School has declined to make any comment.

Commander Dominic Murphy, Head of the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command said: “The threat to the UK from states such as Iran is very serious, so for a soldier in the Army to be sharing sensitive military material and information with them is extremely reckless and dangerous.

“Khalife claimed that he wanted to help the UK’s security by becoming a so-called ‘double-agent’ but the reality we uncovered is that he simply put UK security at great risk by what he was doing.

“Then, when he was in prison awaiting trial, he escaped and went on the run. But thanks to some brilliant police work – here in the Met, but also across the country – coupled with the fantastic support of the public, we were able to find and arrest him to make sure he faced justice.

“I’d like to praise all those who worked on this investigation – those who looked into Khalife’s activity in sharing information with the Iranians, but also the many colleagues from agencies and police forces who assisted us when he was at large.

“I hope this serves as a warning that the illegal sharing of information in this way will be treated extremely seriously by security services and police and we will use the full force of the law against those who put the UK’s security at risk.”

An investigation into Khalife began in November 2021 after he anonymously contacted MI5 twice that month to say that he had established contact with Iranian agents and wanted to become a ‘double agent’.

The details, however, were passed to police and they identified that Khalife was the person behind the calls and that he was a soldier in the Army based at Staffordshire Barracks.

Khalife was arrested in January 2022, and police seized various devices and documents from his room.

The ensuing investigation found Khalife was in possession of various sensitive documents and information – including details of soldiers who were attached to highly sensitive military units.

They also found evidence that Khalife had made contact with Iranian agents and had passed sensitive military information to them over the preceding two-and-a-half years.

Khalife was due to be charged with offences in January 2023, however he was reported as missing by his Army unit in early January 2023.

When his room was searched, what appeared to be a potential improvised explosive device was found, along with a note, indicating that Khalife had left as he feared he was going to be charged when he returned on bail.

On 26 January 2023, Khalife was spotted at a Leisure Centre in Staffordshire and was subsequently arrested and charged.

In September 2023, while awaiting trial, Khalife escaped from HMP Wandsworth.

Police were informed and following a three-day manhunt – which involved hundreds of officers from across the Metropolitan Police, as well as support from police forces across the country and colleagues from various other agencies including those at ports and borders – Khalife was found and arrested in Northolt.

When he was giving evidence during his trial at Woolwich Crown Court, on 11 November, Khalife pleaded guilty to escaping from HMP Wandsworth.

Today he was found guilty of passing on information to Iran, contrary to section 1 of the Official Secrets Act 1911. He was also found guilty of eliciting or attempted to elicit information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, contrary to section 58A of the Terrorism Act 2000

Khalife was found not guilty by the jury of creating a bomb hoax at the Army barracks in Staffordshire.

He will be sentenced at the same court on 12 December.