Pensioner's 'James Bond' Fantasy Ends in Seven-Year Sentence
A 66-year-old man from Essex has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of attempting to assist a foreign intelligence service by providing personal details of Defence Secretary Grant Shapps.
Howard Phillips, from Harlow, was found guilty in July 2024 after a trial at Winchester Crown Court heard he had been seeking 'easy money' when he offered his services to two undercover officers posing as Russian agents.
The Sting Operation Unfolds
The court heard how Phillips, who described himself as retired with a background in insolvency, had been struggling financially when he initiated contact with the Russian embassy offering his services.
In March 2024, while undergoing pre-employment checks for a job application with the UK Border Force, Phillips began exchanging emails with the undercover officers, known only as 'Dima' and 'Sasha', believing them to be genuine Russian intelligence operatives.
Phillips placed a USB stick containing sensitive information about Grant Shapps, including his home address and the location of his private plane, into the exposed seat shaft of a bicycle on Polygon Road in the St Pancras and Euston area of London.
Meeting at Costa Coffee and Arrest
The operation culminated in May 2024 when Phillips met the undercover officers at a Costa Coffee in West Thurrock, where he detailed the information he could provide about the Defence Secretary.
Phillips told the court he had met Shapps at a synagogue where the MP served as his local representative for Welwyn Hatfield, and claimed to be Jewish himself.
He was arrested in May 2024 and charged under the National Security Act, becoming one of the early cases prosecuted under this new legislation.
Sentencing and Unusual Defence
During sentencing, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told Phillips: 'You were prepared to betray your country for money. I sentence you on the basis you are not ideologically driven but motivated by money.'
The judge noted that Phillips had taken 'a grave risk' without caring about the potential damage, but acknowledged that security services had intercepted him before he could provide material assistance to an actual foreign intelligence service.
In a surprising defence, Phillips claimed he had been attempting to 'expose' Russian agents and planned to pass information about them to Israel, which he believed would 'benefit' the state.
His ex-wife, Amanda Phillips, provided insight into his motivations, telling the court he 'would dream about being like James Bond' and was 'infatuated' with MI5 and MI6, regularly watching films about the intelligence services.
The case highlights the ongoing vigilance of UK security services against potential espionage threats targeting senior government officials.
