A former British soldier has been jailed after he sent an email containing sensitive military information to various external recipients.
Amine Matthew Sabrane Conroy, 25, of west London, was sentenced at Kingston Crown Court to a total of four years’ imprisonment on December 16.
Conroy previously pleaded guilty on November 5 to the following offenses:
- One count of eliciting, publishing or communicating information about members of armed forces – contrary to section 58A of the Terrorism Act (TACT), 2000;
- Five counts of collecting, making a record of, or possessing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism – contrary to section 58 TACT, 2000;
- Two counts of possessing an extreme pornographic image – contrary to section 63(1) of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008.
An investigation by the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, working closely with colleagues from the Ministry of Defence, found that Conroy sent an email on May 1 2020 containing sensitive military information.
The investigation found that prior to his discharge from the British Army earlier in the year in February, Conroy had acquired some of the information sent in the May email.
Conroy was arrested on May 4. Digital forensic analysis of his computers and digital devices seized from his address identified copies of the documents contained within the emails, and also found evidence confirming that Conroy had been the one who sent the email. When examining his digital devices, officers also found extreme pornographic images.
After further enquiries, Conroy was charged on June 29 and subsequently convicted and sentenced as above.
Commander Richard Smith, Head of the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command said:
“There is no doubt that the information Conroy copied and then emailed out had the potential to put the safety and security of military personnel at increased risk. Today’s sentence should make it absolutely clear that there are very serious consequences for anyone who chooses to do this sort of thing.
“Police and the military take this extremely seriously and we will seek to identify, arrest and prosecute anyone responsible for putting others’ lives at risk through the illegal sharing of sensitive information that could then be used by those with hostile or terrorist intent.”
Read the statement at the Metropolitan Police
