Latest news with #TheGreatReplacement
1News
2 days ago
- Politics
- 1News
Soldier admits handing info to person he thought was foreign agent
A soldier with links to far-right groups has admitted handing over and attempting to hand over sensitive military information to a person he thought was a foreign agent. But the soldier was actually caught in an undercover sting. He also possessed a video of the 2019 Christchurch Mosque attacks and the mosque attacker's manifesto, The Great Replacement. At a court martial at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North today, the soldier, whose name is suppressed on a temporary basis, admitted one charge each of attempted espionage, dishonestly accessing a computer system and possessing an objectionable publication. The name of the foreign country the undercover agent said they were representing is suppressed. ADVERTISEMENT The charges The attempted espionage charge dates to between ,December 5 and 12, 2019 when the soldier attempted to hand information to the undercover agent he thought represented a foreign country. That information was likely to prejudice the security and defence of New Zealand, according to the wording of the charge. The soldier handed over phone directories for Linton Military Camp, Burnham Military Camp, Trentham Military Camp and the Hokowhitu campus in Palmerston North, as well as for the Messines Defence Centre. The latter document is classified. He also attempted to hand over maps and an annotated photo of Linton Military camp; a document setting out Linton's security vulnerabilities; his own ID card; access codes and information allowing for unauthorised access to Linton and Ohakea air base; and his name and passwords, which allowed unauthorised access to the Defence Force system. On December 12, 2019, the soldier accessed this system for dishonest reasons. He obtained property, maps, images and phone directories. This includes a map and phone director of Woodburn air base; a map of an ammunition depot at Kauri Point, Auckland; an aerial photo of a navy ship; and aerial photos and a phone director from Whenuapai air base in Auckland. ADVERTISEMENT On December 16 that year he possessed a recording of the Christchurch mosque attack, which is a restricted publication, and The Great Replacement. First of its kind This is the first military prosecution for espionage or attempted espionage. Fifty years ago, in the civilian court, Bill Sutch was acquitted on charges relating to his alleged passing of information to the Russians. In late 2020, 17 charges under the Armed Forces Discipline Act were laid against the soldier, including espionage and possessing objectionable material. A long period of pre-trial hearings then followed. The 17 charges were withdrawn in March and replaced with the three charges the soldier initially admitted in March, before confirming those pleas before Judge Kevin Riordan and a military panel today. The military panel accepted the guilty pleas and will decide the soldier's sentence. RNZ has previously reported the soldier, aged 27 at the time of his arrest, was a member of far-right groups the Dominion Movement and Action Zealandia.
Otago Daily Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Soldier caught in sting handing over sensitive info
By Jimmy Ellingham of RNZ A soldier with links to far-right groups has admitted handing over and attempting to hand over sensitive military information to a person he thought was a foreign agent. But the soldier was actually caught in an undercover sting. He also possessed a video of the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks and the attacker's manifesto, The Great Replacement . At a court martial at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North today, the soldier, whose name is suppressed on a temporary basis, admitted one charge each of attempted espionage, dishonestly accessing a computer system and possessing an objectionable publication. The name of the foreign country the undercover agent said they were representing is suppressed. The charges The attempted espionage charge dates to between December 5 and 12 in 2019, when the soldier attempted to hand information to the undercover agent he thought represented a foreign country. That information was likely to prejudice the security and defence of New Zealand, according to the wording of the charge. The soldier handed over phone directories for Linton Military Camp, Burnham Military Camp, Trentham Military Camp and the Hokowhitu campus in Palmerston North, as well as for the Messines Defence Centre. The latter document is classified. He also attempted to hand over maps and an annotated photo of Linton Military camp; a document setting out Linton's security vulnerabilities; his own ID card; access codes and information allowing for unauthorised access to Linton and Ohakea air base; and his name and passwords, which allowed unauthorised access to the Defence Force system. On December 12 in 2019, the soldier accessed this system for dishonest reasons. He obtained property, maps, images and phone directories. This included a map and phone directory of Woodbourne air base; a map of an ammunition depot at Kauri Point in Auckland; an aerial photo of a navy ship; and aerial photos and a phone director from Whenuapai air base in Auckland. On December 16 that year he possessed a recording of the Christchurch mosque attack, which is a restricted publication, and the attacker's manifesto. First of its kind This is the first military prosecution for espionage or attempted espionage. Fifty years ago, in the civilian court, Bill Sutch was acquitted on charges relating to his alleged passing of information to the Russians. In late 2020, charges under the Armed Forces Discipline Act were laid against the soldier, including espionage and possessing objectionable material. A long period of pre-trial hearings then followed. The 17 charges were withdrawn in March and replaced with the three charges the soldier initially admitted in March, before confirming those pleas before Judge Kevin Riordan and a military panel today. The military panel accepted the guilty pleas and will decide the soldier's sentence. RNZ has previously reported the soldier, aged 27 at the time of his arrest, was a member of far-right groups the Dominion Movement and Action Zealandia. Undercover sting When the soldier moved into his home at Linton Military Camp, he found a bag that included classified information. The solder in 2019 came to the attention of authorities for reasons including his desire to defect. After the Christchurch mosque attacks on March 15, 2019, police spoke to the soldier twice about his involvement in the New Zealand identitarian movement, which is concerned with preserving white European identity. He denied the group was anything other than a community-based organisation. He was contacted by an undercover officer purporting to represent the foreign country on November 20 and the pair met the next day. The soldier handed over a document he was asked to prepare outlining how he could help the foreign country. At the undercover agent's request he sent a further document on November 23 with more information about how he could help. The agent contacted him three days later asking he prepare documents for them and on November 28 he handed over Defence Force material and a handbook. He said he could get further documents, such as maps and photos. The agent and the soldier spoke more on December 2 and on December 5 he handed over the phone directories, then in coming days attempted to hand over further information.
Otago Daily Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Soldier admits handing over sensitive info
By Jimmy Ellingham of RNZ A soldier with links to far-right groups has admitted handing over and attempting to hand over sensitive military information to a person he thought was a foreign agent. But the soldier was actually caught in an undercover sting. He also possessed a video of the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks and the attacker's manifesto, The Great Replacement . At a court martial at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North today, the soldier, whose name is suppressed on a temporary basis, admitted one charge each of attempted espionage, dishonestly accessing a computer system and possessing an objectionable publication. The name of the foreign country the undercover agent said they were representing is suppressed. The charges The attempted espionage charge dates to between December 5 and 12 in 2019, when the soldier attempted to hand information to the undercover agent he thought represented a foreign country. That information was likely to prejudice the security and defence of New Zealand, according to the wording of the charge. The soldier handed over phone directories for Linton Military Camp, Burnham Military Camp, Trentham Military Camp and the Hokowhitu campus in Palmerston North, as well as for the Messines Defence Centre. The latter document is classified. He also attempted to hand over maps and an annotated photo of Linton Military camp; a document setting out Linton's security vulnerabilities; his own ID card; access codes and information allowing for unauthorised access to Linton and Ohakea air base; and his name and passwords, which allowed unauthorised access to the Defence Force system. On December 12 in 2019, the soldier accessed this system for dishonest reasons. He obtained property, maps, images and phone directories. This included a map and phone directory of Woodbourne air base; a map of an ammunition depot at Kauri Point in Auckland; an aerial photo of a navy ship; and aerial photos and a phone director from Whenuapai air base in Auckland. On December 16 that year he possessed a recording of the Christchurch mosque attack, which is a restricted publication, and the attacker's manifesto. First of its kind This is the first military prosecution for espionage or attempted espionage. Fifty years ago, in the civilian court, Bill Sutch was acquitted on charges relating to his alleged passing of information to the Russians. In late 2020, charges under the Armed Forces Discipline Act were laid against the soldier, including espionage and possessing objectionable material. A long period of pre-trial hearings then followed. The 17 charges were withdrawn in March and replaced with the three charges the soldier initially admitted in March, before confirming those pleas before Judge Kevin Riordan and a military panel today. The military panel accepted the guilty pleas and will decide the soldier's sentence. RNZ has previously reported the soldier, aged 27 at the time of his arrest, was a member of far-right groups the Dominion Movement and Action Zealandia. Undercover sting When the soldier moved into his home at Linton Military Camp, he found a bag that included classified information. The solder in 2019 came to the attention of authorities for reasons including his desire to defect. After the Christchurch mosque attacks on March 15, 2019, police spoke to the soldier twice about his involvement in the New Zealand identitarian movement, which is concerned with preserving white European identity. He denied the group was anything other than a community-based organisation. He was contacted by an undercover officer purporting to represent the foreign country on November 20 and the pair met the next day. The soldier handed over a document he was asked to prepare outlining how he could help the foreign country. At the undercover agent's request he sent a further document on November 23 with more information about how he could help. The agent contacted him three days later asking he prepare documents for them and on November 28 he handed over Defence Force material and a handbook. He said he could get further documents, such as maps and photos. The agent and the soldier spoke more on December 2 and on December 5 he handed over the phone directories, then in coming days attempted to hand over further information.
NZ Herald
3 days ago
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Soldier admits spying against NZ by trying to give military base maps to foreign country
Today, at Linton Military Camp, he affirmed guilty pleas that he made in March to those charges. However, due to court suppression orders, this is the first time the media have been able to report his plea. In addition to the information the soldier attempted to pass on, he also admitted to accessing the NZDF intranet and gained access to maps and telephone directories of the Woodbourne Air Force base in Blenheim, information on the Kauri Point ammunition depot, an aerial photo of the Air Force base in Auckland, as well as its telephone directory. A Court Martial began at the Linton Military Camp today. Photo / Jeremy Wilkinson The soldier admitted a third charge of possession of footage of the Christchurch mosque shooting, as well as a copy of the shooter's manifesto titled 'The Great Replacement'. Both the video and the text were outlawed by the Chief Censor. The start of today's Court Martial has been five years in the making after the man was first arrested in 2020 following a joint investigation by the NZDF and police. The soldier was originally facing 17 charges, including espionage, but those charges were replaced by attempted espionage, accessing a computer system for dishonest purposes and possession of an objectionable publication. Espionage, commonly referred to as spying, is legally defined as the communication or delivery of information to another country with the intent to prejudice the security interests of New Zealand. The only similar case to date in the country's history occurred roughly 50 years ago when William Sutch was tried and then acquitted in a civilian court of supplying a Russian agent with information. Undercover Operation According to the summary of facts read out this afternoon, the man came to the attention of police following a focus on right-wing extremist groups following the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings. The soldier was identified as a person of interest, and an undercover officer made contact with him, pretending to be an official from a foreign country. They spoke on the phone and agreed to meet up, and the soldier was asked to provide a document outlining the information he was willing to provide, which he did in the form of a handwritten letter. In November 2019, he met with the undercover officer and provided them with a bag containing sensitive information. They met several more times and he handed over further information, including maps, aerial photographs and phone directories for various NZDF bases around the country. Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū, covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals. He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
Soldier admits handing over sensitive information to person he thought was foreign agent
Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone A soldier with links to far-right groups has admitted handing over and attempting to hand over sensitive military information to a person he thought was a foreign agent. But the soldier was actually caught in an undercover sting. He also possessed a video of the 2019 Christchurch Mosque attacks and the mosque attacker's manifesto, The Great Replacement. At a court martial at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North today, the soldier, whose name is suppressed on a temporary basis, admitted one charge each of attempted espionage, dishonestly accessing a computer system and possessing an objectionable publication. The name of the foreign country the undercover agent said they were representing is suppressed. The attempted espionage charge dates to between 5 and 12 December 2019 when the soldier attempted to hand information to the undercover agent he thought represented a foreign country. That information was likely to prejudice the security and defence of New Zealand, according to the wording of the charge. The soldier handed over phone directories for Linton Military Camp, Burnham Military Camp, Trentham Military Camp and the Hokowhitu campus in Palmerston North, as well as for the Messines Defence Centre. The latter document is classified. He also attempted to hand over maps and an annotated photo of Linton Military camp; a document setting out Linton's security vulnerabilities; his own ID card; access codes and information allowing for unauthorised access to Linton and Ohakea air base; and his name and passwords, which allowed unauthorised access to the Defence Force system. On 12 December, 2019, the soldier access this system for dishonest reasons. He obtained property, maps, images and phone directories. This includes a map and phone director of Woodburn air base; a map of an ammunition depot at Kauri Point, Auckland; an aerial photo of a navy ship; and aerial photos and a phone director from Whenuapai air base in Auckland. On 16 December that year he possessed a recording of the Christchurch mosque attack, which is a restricted publication, and The Great Replacement. This is the first military prosecution for espionage or attempted espionage. Fifty years ago, in the civilian court, Bill Sutch was acquitted on charges relating to his alleged passing of information to the Russians. In late 2020, 17 charges under the Armed Forces Discipline Act were laid against the soldier, including espionage and possessing objectionable material. A long period of pre-trial hearings then followed. The 17 charges were withdrawn in March and replaced with the three charges the soldier initially admitted in March, before confirming those pleas before Judge Kevin Riordan and a military panel today. The military panel accepted the guilty pleas and will decide the soldier's sentence. RNZ has previously reported the soldier, aged 27 at the time of his arrest, was a member of far-right groups the Dominion Movement and Action Zealandia. More to come...
