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A man from Harlow, Essex, who once harbored dreams of emulating James Bond, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for attempting to spy for Russia. Howard Phillips, 66, sought to provide personal information about former Defence Secretary Sir Grant Shapps. The Conservative MP recounted visiting Phillips’s residence after relocating to a new home in 2002. Phillips was convicted of aiding a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act and received his sentence at Winchester Crown Court in Hampshire.
During the sentencing, Mrs. Justice Cheema-Grubb admonished Phillips, stating, “You were willing to betray your country for financial gain.” She highlighted the severity of the risk he undertook and emphasized that his capture by security forces precluded him from providing assistance to a foreign intelligence service, averting potential dangers. The judge determined that Phillips’s motivation was financial rather than ideological, leading to his incarceration.
Testimony during Phillips’s trial earlier in the year revealed that he had applied for a position at the UK Border Force in October 2023 as part of his scheme to help Russia. Represented as an individual who idolized James Bond and exhibited a deep interest in MI5 and MI6, Phillips engaged with undercover British intelligence operatives, whom he mistook for Russian agents. The defendant agreed to disclose personal details about Sir Grant, such as his address, phone number, and the location of his private aircraft, establishing a plan to leave a USB for the agents near St Pancras and Euston stations in London. Sir Grant expressed his shock and concern for his family’s safety in a victim impact statement, denouncing Phillips’s actions as a betrayal of trust with severe ramifications for national security
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