Sydney, Australia, Aug 20 (EFE).- A New Zealand soldier was sentenced to two years in military detention and dismissed from the army on Wednesday in the country’s first ever conviction for spying.
During a court martial hearing this week at Linton Military Camp, near the North Island’s Palmerston North city, the soldier admitted to and was convicted of charges of attempted espionage, dishonestly accessing a computer system and possessing an objectionable publication.
The soldier, who had ties to two far-right groups far-right groups and was 27 at the time of his arrest around five years ago, admitted to handing over and attempting to hand over sensitive military information to a person he thought was a foreign agent, but was actually an undercover officer, according to public broadcaster Radio New Zealand.
The name of the soldier, the foreign country he thought he was acting for, and the undercover officer are under suppression orders.
Judge Kevin Riordon said the sentence was aimed at acting as a deterrent.
“The court considers your actions are demanding of strong denunciation,” he said, according to RNZ. “You obtained the property of the Defense Force with the intent of handing the material on to someone you thought was an agent of a foreign power.”
“There is no such thing as a non-serious act of espionage. There is no trivial act of espionage,” he added.
The soldier came to the attention of authorities in the wake of the 2019 Christchurch terror attack due to his links to two far-right groups.
While under monitoring, the government became aware he had made contact with a third party, indicating he wanted to defect. He was then approached by an undercover officer who purported to represent the foreign country.
The attempted espionage charge dates back to Dec. 1-12, 2019 when the soldier handed over information such as phone directories for three army camps, a campus and a defense center, RNZ reported.
He also attempted to hand over maps and an annotated photo of Linton Military Camp; a document setting out Linton’s security vulnerabilities; his ID card, access codes and information allowing unauthorized access to Linton and an air base; and his name and passwords, which allowed unauthorized access to the Defense Force system, it added.
On Dec. 12 he accessed this system and obtained information including a map and phone directory of an air base; a map of an ammunition depot; an aerial photo of a navy ship, and aerial photos and a phone directory from an air base.
In addition, on Dec. 16, he possessed illegal copies of a livestream recording of the Christchurch mosque attack in which 51 people were killed by Australian Brenton Tarrant, and a copy of the attacker’s manifesto.
The military trial came after a five-year investigation, during which the soldier was under open arrest and suspended from his duties, although he continued to receive his full pay.
He will serve his detention at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch city in the South Island. EFE
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