A 41-year-old US Army soldier was arrested near Gloucester, England, on Tuesday on suspicion of spying for Russia while assigned to NATO's Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, the alliance's British-led rapid-deployment headquarters.
London's Metropolitan Police said the arrest was made as part of a Counter Terrorism Policing investigation, on suspicion of offenses under sections 1 and 3 of the National Security Act 2023: obtaining, copying, retaining or disclosing "protected information," and assisting a foreign intelligence service. "The country to which the allegations relate is Russia," the force said. The soldier, who has not been named, is in custody at a London police station, and officers are searching two addresses in Gloucestershire.
A senior NATO military official confirmed to NBC News that the American service member "was assigned to NATO's" ARRC, whose headquarters sits at Imjin Barracks on the outskirts of Gloucester. Three people familiar with the matter told the network the same.
A U.S. Army soldier has been arrested with our partners in the UK in a Russia-related espionage investigation.
Our message is clear: This @FBI has no tolerance for anyone who breaks their oath to the United States.
FBI will continue using every resource at our disposal to hunt... pic.twitter.com/NZf3Hsv1jN— FBI Director K
