David Ballantyne Smith Explained

David Ballantyne Smith
Birth Place:	Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland
Module:	Embed: yes Branch Label: Service

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. 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.

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.

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

Notes and References

1. News: Kirk . Tristan . 17 February 2023 . David Smith: All we know about 'lonely' Russian spy with a grudge against Britain - and how he was caught . . 2041-4404 . 31 July 2024 . 31 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230331154236/https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/david-smith-spy-russia-berlin-uk-embassy-secrets-b1061024.html . live .
2. News: 11 November 2022 . British worker at UK embassy in Berlin pleads guilty to Russia spying charges . . London . 2024-07-31 . 2023-02-15 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230215200553/https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/british-worker-uk-embassy-berlin-pleads-guilty-eight-spying-charges-2022-11-11/ . live .
3. News: Symonds . Tom . Burns . Judith . 17 February 2023 . Spy at UK's Berlin embassy jailed for selling secrets to Russia . . 31 July 2024 . 27 February 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240227094503/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64669885 . live .