Latest news with #Phillips
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Russian spy Brit who 'dreamed of being James Bond' caught in undercover sting
Howard Phillips was trying to pass on information to the Russians about Tory MP Grant Shapps when he was Minister of Defence and thought he was talking to agents from Moscow A Brit who 'dreamt about being like James Bond ' has been found guilty of trying to spy for what he believed to be Russian intelligence service agents. Howard Phillips, 65, from Harlow, Essex, intended to help two apparent Russian agents called 'Sasha' and 'Dima', including by passing on personal information about former defence secretary Grant Shapps, helping with travel logistics and booking hotels. But 'Dima' and 'Sasha' were in fact undercover British intelligence officers, Winchester Crown Court previously heard. A jury found Phillips guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act on Tuesday, following a trial at the same court. The jury reached a unanimous verdict after four hours and four minutes of deliberations. Phillips, wearing a dark suit and tie, silently shook his head in the dock as the verdict was given. The defendant's ex-wife, Amanda Phillips, told the court during the trial that he 'would dream about being like James Bond', and that he watched films to do with MI5 and MI6 as he was 'infatuated with it'. Mrs Phillips told the court she was aware the defendant had applied for a job at the UK Border Force in October 2023, which prosecutors said was part of his bid to assist Russia 's intelligence service. Phillips previously claimed he had contacted the Russian embassy in early 2024 in a bid to track and expose Russian agents to assist Israel. Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb remanded Phillips in custody and adjourned sentencing to the 'earliest available date' in the autumn. The court was previously told how Phillips made a written pledge to the fake agents in which he promised "100 per cent loyalty" and also boasted of how he could move "under the radar" because of his security clearances. He bragged he could be 'totally hidden' and serve a "foreign power" and even came up with the codeword "mother" for Moscow, it was said. The court was told Phillips, who used to work in insolvency, was retired but was looking for easy money. Ms Ledward KC said: 'At the time we are concerned, he was unemployed, and it would seem that he had got to the point where he was struggling financially. 'That appears to have been a very significant factor in his eagerness and his desire to provide assistance to the Russian intelligence service. "The evidence you may think, in due course, once you've heard it, we suggest, shows he was keen to offer assistance, not necessarily for any ideological reason or because he sympathized with the Russian state, but particularly because he wanted to be financially rewarded for so doing easy and perhaps interesting or exciting work for easy money.'
Euronews
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Euronews
UK man obsessed with James Bond convicted of trying to spy for Russia
A British man who dreamed of being like James Bond was convicted on Tuesday of trying to spy for Russia. Howard Phillips, 65, sought to pass information about former Defence Secretary Grant Shapps to two men he believed were Russian agents. However, the contacts were actually undercover British intelligence agents. A jury at Winchester Crown Court found Phillips guilty of assisting what he believed to be a foreign intelligence agency. The unanimous verdict came after four hours of deliberations. He was remanded into custody and will be sentenced in autumn although no precise date has been set. Prosecutors said Phillips offered to turn over Shapps' contact details as well as the location where he kept his private plane to "facilitate the Russians in listening on British defence plans". The defendant's ex-wife told the court that Phillips "would dream about being like James Bond," and watched films about the British secret services because he was "infatuated with it". Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counterterrorism division, said the conviction sends a clear message to anyone considering spying for Russia. "Phillips was brazen in his pursuit for financial gain, and unbothered about the potential detriment to his own country," David said.
Powys County Times
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Powys County Times
British man convicted of trying to spy for Russian intelligence service
A British man who 'dreamt about being like James Bond' has been found guilty of trying to spy for what he believed to be Russian intelligence service agents. Howard Phillips, 65, from Harlow, Essex, intended to help two apparent Russian agents called 'Sasha' and 'Dima', including by passing on personal information about former defence secretary Sir Grant Shapps, helping with travel logistics and booking hotels. But 'Dima' and 'Sasha' were in fact undercover British intelligence officers, Winchester Crown Court previously heard. A jury found Phillips guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act on Tuesday, following a two-week trial at the same court. The jury reached a unanimous verdict after four hours and four minutes of deliberations. Phillips, wearing a dark suit and tie, silently shook his head in the dock as the verdict was given. Prosecutors said Phillips intended to assist Russian agents from the end of 2023 until May last year. Phillips offered to pass on Sir Grant's contact details as well as the location where he kept his private plane in order to 'facilitate the Russians in listening on British defence plans', the trial heard. He was heard telling the men he wanted to work for Russia in exchange for financial independence from the UK. The defendant's ex-wife, Amanda Phillips, told the court during the trial that he 'would dream about being like James Bond', and that he watched films to do with MI5 and MI6 as he was 'infatuated with it'. Mrs Phillips told the court she was aware the defendant had applied for a job at the UK Border Force in October 2023, which prosecutors said was part of his bid to assist Russia's intelligence service. Phillips previously claimed he had contacted the Russian embassy in early 2024 in a bid to track and expose Russian agents to assist Israel. He told jurors he ascertained 'from the onset' that 'Dima' and 'Shasha' were 'definitely not Russian' and were undercover individuals, but that he carried on 'playing a role' around these agents in order to 'test the waters'. Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb remanded Phillips in custody and adjourned sentencing to the 'earliest available date' in the autumn. The judge said she wanted a full pre-sentence report on the defendant ahead of sentencing as the conviction was for a 'relatively new' offence. Addressing the jurors, she said: 'Thank you very much for the important work that you have done on this very important case. 'We are trying, as a system, to get to the right answers in these situations.' Officers from the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command arrested Phillips in central London on May 16 last year, after he travelled to the capital for a meeting with the two apparent Russian agents. Detective Chief Superintendent Helen Flanagan said: 'Phillips was unemployed and his primary motivation for wanting to become a spy for the Russian Intelligence Service was financial reward. 'His conviction should act as stark warning to anyone who thinks that carrying out illegal activity on behalf of a foreign state is an attractive or easy way to earn money. 'The reality is that we take this kind of activity extremely seriously. 'Those involved will be identified, investigated and, like Phillips, will face extremely serious consequences when they are convicted. 'This case is also another successful use of the National Security Act to prosecute someone who was attempting to undermine the security of the UK and we will continue to use these powers available to us to help keep the public safe.' Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counter terrorism division, said: 'This conviction sends a clear message to anyone considering spying for or assisting Russia. 'Howard Phillips clearly outlined the services he was willing to provide for a hostile state. From gaining employment within the civil service and applying for security clearance, to providing the personal details of the Secretary of State for Defence – Phillips was brazen in his pursuit for financial gain and unbothered about the potential detriment to his own country. 'It is a criminal offence to assist a foreign intelligence service, regardless of your motive or whether or not you succeed. 'We will always seek to prosecute anyone who poses a threat to the UK.'
Washington Post
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
UK jury finds man who dreamed of being James Bond guilty of attempting to spy for Russia
LONDON — A British man who dreamed of being like James Bond was convicted on Tuesday of attempting to spy for Russia. Howard Phillips, 65, sought to pass information about former Defense Secretary Grant Shapps to two men he believed were Russian agents. However, the agents were undercover British intelligence agents. A jury at Winchester Crown Court found Phillips guilty of assisting what he believed to be a foreign intelligence agency. The unanimous verdict came after four hours of deliberations. He was remanded into custody and will be sentenced in the fall. No precise date was set. Prosecutors said Phillips offered to turn over Shapps' contact details as well as the location where he kept his private plane to 'facilitate the Russians in listening on British defense plans.' The defendant's ex-wife told the court that Phillips 'would dream about being like James Bond,' and watched films about the British secret services because he was 'infatuated with it.' Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counterterrorism division, said the conviction sends a clear message to anyone considering spying for Russia. 'Phillips was brazen in his pursuit for financial gain, and unbothered about the potential detriment to his own country,' David said.
Glasgow Times
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
British man convicted of trying to spy for Russian intelligence service
Howard Phillips, 65, from Harlow, Essex, intended to help two apparent Russian agents called 'Sasha' and 'Dima', including by passing on personal information about former defence secretary Sir Grant Shapps, helping with travel logistics and booking hotels. But 'Dima' and 'Sasha' were in fact undercover British intelligence officers, Winchester Crown Court previously heard. A jury found Phillips guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act on Tuesday, following a two-week trial at the same court. The jury reached a unanimous verdict after four hours and four minutes of deliberations. Phillips, wearing a dark suit and tie, silently shook his head in the dock as the verdict was given. Prosecutors said Phillips intended to assist Russian agents from the end of 2023 until May last year. Phillips offered to pass on Sir Grant's contact details as well as the location where he kept his private plane in order to 'facilitate the Russians in listening on British defence plans', the trial heard. He was heard telling the men he wanted to work for Russia in exchange for financial independence from the UK. The defendant's ex-wife, Amanda Phillips, told the court during the trial that he 'would dream about being like James Bond', and that he watched films to do with MI5 and MI6 as he was 'infatuated with it'. Mrs Phillips told the court she was aware the defendant had applied for a job at the UK Border Force in October 2023, which prosecutors said was part of his bid to assist Russia's intelligence service. Phillips previously claimed he had contacted the Russian embassy in early 2024 in a bid to track and expose Russian agents to assist Israel. He told jurors he ascertained 'from the onset' that 'Dima' and 'Shasha' were 'definitely not Russian' and were undercover individuals, but that he carried on 'playing a role' around these agents in order to 'test the waters'. Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb remanded Phillips in custody and adjourned sentencing to the 'earliest available date' in the autumn. The judge said she wanted a full pre-sentence report on the defendant ahead of sentencing as the conviction was for a 'relatively new' offence. Addressing the jurors, she said: 'Thank you very much for the important work that you have done on this very important case. 'We are trying, as a system, to get to the right answers in these situations.' Officers from the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command arrested Phillips in central London on May 16 last year, after he travelled to the capital for a meeting with the two apparent Russian agents. Detective Chief Superintendent Helen Flanagan said: 'Phillips was unemployed and his primary motivation for wanting to become a spy for the Russian Intelligence Service was financial reward. 'His conviction should act as stark warning to anyone who thinks that carrying out illegal activity on behalf of a foreign state is an attractive or easy way to earn money. 'The reality is that we take this kind of activity extremely seriously. 'Those involved will be identified, investigated and, like Phillips, will face extremely serious consequences when they are convicted. 'This case is also another successful use of the National Security Act to prosecute someone who was attempting to undermine the security of the UK and we will continue to use these powers available to us to help keep the public safe.' Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counter terrorism division, said: 'This conviction sends a clear message to anyone considering spying for or assisting Russia. 'Howard Phillips clearly outlined the services he was willing to provide for a hostile state. From gaining employment within the civil service and applying for security clearance, to providing the personal details of the Secretary of State for Defence – Phillips was brazen in his pursuit for financial gain and unbothered about the potential detriment to his own country. 'It is a criminal offence to assist a foreign intelligence service, regardless of your motive or whether or not you succeed. 'We will always seek to prosecute anyone who poses a threat to the UK.'
