Daniel Khalife, a former soldier, has been sentenced to more than 14 years in custody and condemned as a “dangerous fool” for spying for Iran and escaping from prison.
In September 2023, Khalife, 23, sparked a high-profile manhunt when he broke out of HMP Wandsworth by clinging to the underside of a food delivery truck. At the time he was being held on remand for spying charges.
Last November, a jury at Woolwich crown court found him guilty of breaching the Official Secrets Act and the Terrorism Act by passing on information to Iran while he was serving in the army. During his trial he also admitted escaping from prison before his capture on a canal towpath by a plainclothed detective. He was cleared of carrying out a bomb hoax.
On Monday, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb sentenced him to 14 years and three months at Woolwich crown court.
In her sentencing remarks she said: “Deterring others from similar behaviour must be the primary aim of this sentence.” The judge said Khalife was motivated by a “selfish desire to show off”.
The trial heard how Khalife had “exposed military personnel to serious harm” by collecting sensitive information and passing it on to Iranian agents for cash.
Prosecutors said Khalife played “a cynical game”, claiming he wanted a career as a double agent to help the British intelligence services, when in fact he gathered “a very large body of restricted and classified material”.
Mr Justice Cheema-Grubb said:“Having taken an oath of allegiance, you were motivated by a personal grievance to betray your colleagues and superiors. Your conduct was premeditated and continued for over two years.
“You were aware that the Iranians had technology which could access your mobile phone and track where you, and by direct inference, your colleagues were serving, although it may be that some of your early material was bogus and of no direct importance, you did not stop when you realise that the domestic security services were not going to respond to your overtures.”
Defending, Gul Nawaz Hussain KC said Khalife spying activity was amateurish, describing as more “Scooby Doo” than 007.
Some documents Khalife forged to pass to the Iranians were “laughably fake”, Hussain told the court.
He told the judge: “What Daniel Khalife clearly chose to do was not born of malice, was not born of greed, religious fervour or ideological conviction.
“His intentions were neither sinister nor cynical.”
