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Former MI6 agent charged over lists of intelligence personnel

17 April 2010 03:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. A former MI6 agent has been charged with trying to sell classified lists of intelligence service personnel to a foreign power, it was revealed, APA reports quoting â€œTimes Onlineâ€.
Daniel Houghton already faced two charges of copying and passing information on classified intelligence-gathering techniques.
Some of the electronic files, which were stolen from MI5, were marked â€œtop secretâ€, the highest security rating, others were marked â€œsecretâ€. The charges carry a maximum sentence of nine years in prison.
The third charge was added during a court appearance at Horseferry Magistratesâ€™ Court in Westminster.
Mr Houghton, 25, who worked for the Special Intelligence Service, MI6, between 2007 and last year, was caught in a sting operation by the security services as he allegedly tried to pass computer memory sticks and a hard drive to what he believed were representatives of a foreign power.
The handover took place in a Central London hotel in February. Mr Houghton had been seeking Â£2 million for the secret files, but accepted a suitcase containing Â£900,000 from undercover officers, it is alleged. He was arrested as he left the meeting.
Piers Arnold, for the prosecution, told the court that Mr Houghton: â€œUnlawfully disclosed staff lists as a result of which people working for the intelligence services were put at risk by his actions which damaged operational capability.â€
The Crown case will be supported by 47 witnesses. Many will be identified only by number as they are serving members of MI5 and MI6.
Houghton, who was dressed in a blue shirt and jacket, smiled briefly at his mother after entering the dock but was otherwise impassive and spoke only to confirm his name and birth date.
He did not appeal for bail and he declined the offer to enter a plea on any of the charges.
Houghtonâ€™s mother, Elizabeth Havinga, declined to comment on the case. The family has previously said they were unaware that Mr Houghton was employed by MI6. He has dual English and Dutch nationality and took a degree at the University of Birmingham in computer interactive systems.
Friends said that he told them he was a graduate trainee at Lloyds Bank. His flatmate in Islington, Kimberly Peterson, 27, described him as â€œquiet but friendlyâ€.
Michael Jones, who runs a cycling club of which Houghton was a member near his family home in Devon, said: â€œIâ€™ve known him since he was a young man. I thought he worked in a bank. I know he loves Japan and had often been there and travelled a lot in South Korea. He is exceptionally bright and considers himself one of the brightest of those his age. To be honest, he thinks a lot of himself.â€
District Judge Timothy Workman remanded Houghton in custody. He will face trial on May 27 with a preliminary hearing on April 29.