The Royal Military Police are investigating a major security breach after sensitive army documents were discovered in a council recycling bin near Catterick Garrison, Britain's largest army base. The papers, which included soldiers' names and ranks, guard shift patterns, and weapons storage details, were found in a folder marked 'MoD' at Catterick Bridge household waste centre, approximately two-and-a-half miles from the base.
Documents Found by Member of Public
A member of the public discovered the files on top of other rubbish in the bin. The person, who asked not to be identified, told The Sun on Sunday: 'I thought it best to hand them over to stop them falling into the wrong hands. They were literally sat there on top of other rubbish in the bin. They were staring straight at me, and I spotted MoD on the front.' The documents contained information relating to 2018, 2021, and 2023.
Security Risk Assessment
Colonel Philip Ingram MBE, a former senior intelligence and security officer with the British Army, described the incident as a 'clear security risk'. He said: 'It should have been put in a shredding or burn bag and destroyed as sensitive waste.' Shadow Armed Forces minister Mark Francois added that the documents contained information which could have been 'potentially valuable to hostile actors'. He stated: 'It’s very important that the MoD gets to the bottom of exactly how it could have happened, as soon as possible.'
Army Response
A spokesman for the British Army said they take the protection of information 'very seriously'. He added that in this instance it was understood 'no sensitive operational defence information' was contained within the files. Catterick Garrison is home to around 13,000 personnel and is the largest army base in the UK.
