Australian army private and husband charged with allegedly spying for Russia

A 40-year-old private in the Australian army and her 62-year-old husband been arrested for allegedly spying for Russia.

Both Russian-born Australian citizens, they have been accused of obtaining Australian Defence Force material to share with Russian authorities.

The woman has been employed in the Australian Defence Force for several years as an information systems technician. Her husband is a self-employed labourer.

Each is charged with one count of preparing for an espionage offence, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years jail. They were due to appear in court on Friday. This is the first time an espionage offence charge has been laid since new laws were introduced in 2018.

At a Friday news conference, the Australian Federal Police commissioner, Reece Kershaw, and the head of ASIO, Mike Burgess, announced the Thursday arrests of the pair at their Brisbane home.

Kershaw said the AFP alleged the couple worked together to access ADF material relating to national security.

“We allege the woman was undertaking non-declared travel to Russia, whilst she was on long term leave from the Australian Defence Force [since 2023],” he said.

“We allege that whilst she was in Russia, she instructed her husband, who remained in Australia, on how to log into her official work account from their Brisbane home.

“We allege her husband would access requested material and would send it to his wife in Russia.

“We allege they sought that information with the intention of providing it to Russian authorities.”

Whether the information was handed over is still being investigated, Kershaw said. Also being investigated is whether the woman joined the ADF intending to commit espionage.

Kershaw stressed that “no significant compromise has been identified”.

“Our Five Eyes partners and the Australian government can be confident that the robust partnerships within the counter foreign interference task force mean we will continue to identify and disrupt espionage and foreign interference
activity.”

The pair have been in Australia more than ten years. The woman obtained Australian citizenship in 2016 and her husband became a citizen in 2020. They had Russian passports.

Burgess told the news conference the espionage threat was “real”.

“Multiple countries are seeking to steal Australia’s secrets,” he said.