British police said Tuesday they had arrested a U.S. Army officer suspected of attempting to steal secret information from a NATO installation on British soil, to deliver that material to Russia.
The suspect, a 41-year-old U.S. Army officer, was arrested on suspicion of espionage as part of an operation involving Britain’s MI5 domestic security service in coordination with the FBI, according to U.S. and British authorities.
The suspect’s identity was not disclosed. Officials familiar with the investigation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share details of the case, said that no sensitive information was passed to Russia, an indication that the suspect could have been under surveillance and detained before any transfer took place.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the arrest “involves allegations of espionage, which is of the utmost concern to the United States and our allies.” In a statement issued by British authorities, Patel noted the involvement of MI5, British Counter Terrorism Policing as well as British and U.S. Army counterintelligence services.
Brig. Gen. Sean Stinchon, commanding general of U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command, described the suspect as “a senior soldier, entrusted with sensitive information” and said that the case “is a sobering reminder that insider threats are real and persistent.”
The arrest was announced late Tuesday by Britain’s Metropolitan Police. Vicki Evans, senior national coordinator for counterterrorism policing, said “the allegations are serious and our investigation is very much ongoing.”
Officials said the suspect was one of dozens of U.S. military personnel assigned to Imjin Barracks, a British Army installation northwest of London that serves as the headquarters for a NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps — a base from which soldiers could be deployed rapidly across NATO territory.
The arrest comes at a tense moment in Western relations with Moscow, as NATO members across Europe face what security officials have described as a violent campaign of Russian “hybrid” operations including arson, assassination and other attacks.
The arrest also coincides with multilateral peace talks on the war in Ukraine, led by U.S. negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump. The pair met with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
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