Jeffrey Deslisle-former RCN, convicted of spying

[The Bread Guy]

CAVEAT:  The reporter doesn't appear to share the obtained documents, so we can't tell what else may be in them.

AN ALLEGED Canadian spy has compromised Australian intelligence information in an international espionage case that has sent shock waves through Western security agencies.

Jeffrey Paul Delisle, a naval officer, is alleged to have disclosed a vast trove of classified information to Russian agents on a scale comparable to the alleged handover to WikiLeaks of United States military and diplomatic reports by US Army private Bradley Manning.

Sub-Lieutenant Delisle's activities have been the subject of high-level consultation between the Australian and Canadian governments and were discussed at a secret international conference in New Zealand earlier this year.

Much of the information allegedly sold to the Russians was more highly classified than the disclosures attributed to private Manning, and included signals intelligence collected by the ''Five Eyes'' intelligence community of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Australian security sources have privately acknowledged that the security breach compromised intelligence information and capabilities across Western intelligence agencies, especially in the US and Canada but also including Australia's top secret Defence Signals Directorate and the Defence Intelligence Organisation.

Australia's High Commissioner to Canada, Louise Hand, was briefed by the Canadian government on the case shortly after Delisle's arrest on January 14.

Information released under Australian freedom of information laws shows Ms Hand discussed the case with Stephen Rigby, National Security Adviser to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. But her cabled report, classified ''secret - sensitive'' and sent to Canberra on January 30, has been withheld in full on national security grounds.

The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation was also briefed on the Delisle case through liaison with its counterpart, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, which also discussed the matter at a security conference attended by ASIO in NZ in February.

Another Australian diplomatic cable dated February 1 that refers to the case has also been withheld in its entirety.

( .... )

An Australian security source told The Age that Delisle's access was ''apparently very wide'' and that ''Australian reporting was inevitably compromised''.

''The signals intelligence community is very close, we share our intelligence overwhelmingly with the US, UK and Canada,'' one former Defence Signals Directorate officer said.

A former Australian Defence Intelligence Organisation officer and now adjunct professor at Macquarie University, Clive Williams, said: ''Close intelligence relations inevitably result in some overlap in espionage cases, because of the very extensive sharing of information.''

An Australian Defence Department spokesperson said that ''consistent with long-standing practices, the Australian government does not comment on intelligence matters'' ....

Sydney Morning-Herald, 25 Jul 12

 

[Journeyman]

...ALLEGED...
...is alleged to have...
...allegedly...

... been withheld in full...
...has also been withheld in its entirety.

....Sydney Morning-Herald, 25 Jul 12

So, the article is saying that the "Sydney Morning-Herald" is just as reliable as our CBC for providing well-researched and analyzed journalism.

 

[fraserdw]

So, the article is saying that the "Sydney Morning-Herald" is just as reliable as our CBC for providing well-researched and analyzed journalism.

Not sure what you are looking for.  Alleged is appropriate until he is convicted.  The fact is that this Aussie report goes far more in depth than any CBC report because DND is holding their cards really close to their chest.  We can speculate that ship movements was not the target based on this report which was previously the speculation on here. 

 

[dapaterson]

The #1 Australian secret?  "Yes, we know Vegemite tastes like ass."

 

[Journeyman]

Not sure what you are looking for.

I'm not looking for anything; I'm simply suggesting that this is nothing more than a rehash of previously published allegations, accusations, and background info, which provides nothing new -- the key component of "news."

Adding nothing to our knowledge of the case, this article has the analytic depth of an afternoon talk show; to be fair, some may consider that newsworthy.

Perhaps that is because I cannot see how the potential targetting of ship movements can be dismissed based on what is rehashed here.

 

[Occam]

I'm not looking for anything; I'm simply suggesting that this is nothing more than a rehash of previously published allegations, accusations, and background info, which provides nothing new -- the key component of "news."

Adding nothing to our knowledge of the case, this article has the analytic depth of an afternoon talk show; to be fair, some may consider that newsworthy.

Perhaps that is because I cannot see how the potential targetting of ship movements can be dismissed based on what is rehashed here.

Oh, I don't know...prior to this Sydney Morning-Herald report, Canadian news stories played up the fact that he worked at Trinity, which (amongst other things) is responsible for tracking ship movements.  That information is classified Confidential, or Secret at best. 

The Sydney Morning-Herald story is the first that I've seen that suggests that our AUSCANZUKUS wingers are now concerned that Delisle worked/was working with access to SIGINT, which is about as sensitive as classified material gets.  Extremely sensitive stuff.  The material Private Bradley Manning had access to pales in comparison to SIGINT.

 

[Sub_Guy]

http://www.seawaves.com/portvisits.asp

Ship movements!  Looks like the Pro and Cal could be headed to Sydney (nice trip there)

 

[Occam]

....Confidential or Secret at best, unless Command deliberately announces scheduled visits, that is...   

 

[Monsoon]

http://www.seawaves.com/portvisits.asp

Ship movements!  Looks like the Pro and Cal could be headed to Sydney (nice trip there)

Or - gasp - real-time data: http://marinetraffic.com/ais/

 

[Journeyman]

Oh, I don't know...prior to this Sydney Morning-Herald report, Canadian news stories played up the fact that he worked at Trinity, which (amongst other things) is responsible for tracking ship movements.  That information is classified Confidential, or Secret at best. 

The Sydney Morning-Herald story is the first that I've seen that suggests that our AUSCANZUKUS wingers are now concerned that Delisle worked/was working with access to SIGINT, which is about as sensitive as classified material gets.  Extremely sensitive stuff.  The material Private Bradley Manning had access to pales in comparison to SIGINT.

The classification level is irrelevant to the suppositions being bandied about. Because SIGINT is, however, relevant to ship tracking, I'd not dismiss any options based on a not-particularly informative newspaper story.


Personally, I'm not too interested either way; as such, I'll let the judicial system play out without any further Agony Aunt input on my part.

 

[Occam]

The classification level is irrelevant to the suppositions being bandied about.

But it is relevant to the level of damage done to the 5-Eyes community, hence why the Sydney Morning-Herald brings something that other media outlets had not yet picked up on.  If all Delisle had access to was Secret and below information, then that's serious but not earth-shattering.  If he had access to SIGINT at the TS level and above...then I can certainly understand why AUSCANZUKUS would be very, very concerned, as the story describes. 

It's a fairly safe bet that if he had higher access, then whoever he was (allegedly) passing the info to was probably not interested in the slightest in our five-year Opsked or periodic Maritime Intelligence Summaries.  That's all I think anyone is trying to say.

 

[PMedMoe]

Accused spy pleads guilty in Halifax court

Sub-Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle pleaded guilty this morning to spy charges, a surprise move made before his preliminary hearing in a Halifax court.

The intelligence officer with the Canadian Forces was charged with breach of trust and two counts of passing information to a foreign entity.

Delisle's preliminary hearing was scheduled to start Wednesday morning, but the lawyer told the judge his client would plead guilty to all three charges.

The judge asked Delisle, "Do you understand the charges?" and he nodded yes, reports the CBC's Stephen Puddicombe.

He wore the same grey-blue hoodie and jeans he has worn to all his court appearances since his arrest.

Court proceedings have halted as the officials decide on sentencing dates.

More at link

 

[Journeyman]

He wore the same grey-blue hoodie and jeans he has worn to all his court appearances since his arrest.

Tough economic times/personnel cuts when the CBC's Fashion Editor is sent out to cover courtroom proceedings. 

 

[jollyjacktar]

I did not see that one coming.  The disclosure must have shown him that they had him dead to rights.  Will be interesting to see what sort of sentence is passed.  I wonder how much his career was worth as I'm sure he wasn't doing it for free.

 

[The Bread Guy]

I did not see that one coming.  The disclosure must have shown him that they had him dead to rights ....

Maybe the system would be happier with a touch less disclosure, given the sensitivity of the info in question?  That said, it'll be interesting to hear how much will be said in court for sentencing.

Will be interesting to see what sort of sentence is passed.

Indeed ....

 

[Old Sweat]

Tony,

You beat me to it. He may have been offered a deal in return for a guilty plea in order to keep certain facts off the table. However, who is the Crown trying to keep out of the loop? Presumably the bad guys know what he sold/gave them, and our Allies were supposed to have been informed. Could there be a weakness somewhere else that is being masked until it can be fixed?

All questions, and none based on any real information. To paraphrase what Mr. S Holmes said a long time ago, once you have discarded all the things that could not have happened, then what you are left with is the truth.

 

[The Bread Guy]

You beat me to it. He may have been offered a deal in return for a guilty plea in order to keep certain facts off the table. However, who is the Crown trying to keep out of the loop? Presumably the bad guys know what he sold/gave them, and our Allies were supposed to have been informed. Could there be a weakness somewhere else that is being masked until it can be fixed?

I'm thinking the same thing re:  what they don't want out there, and what we won't hear much about at sentencing.  Never thought of the point in yellow, though.

All questions, and none based on any real information. To paraphrase what Mr. S Holmes said a long time ago, once you have discarded all the things that could not have happened, then what you are left with is the truth.

:nod:

 

[jollyjacktar]

Maybe the system would be happier with a touch less disclosure, given the sensitivity of the info in question?  That said, it'll be interesting to hear how much will be said in court for sentencing.

R vs Stinchcomb requires the Crown to give full disclosure to the accused pre-trial.  In a case like this involving intelligence subject matter I don't know how that would pan out or if there's any redaction.  I wasn't involved in the NCIU when I was active so this is out of my field. 

For regular court stuff I had to cough up all my notes, files and reports to the defence as per.  It did give the accused and his lawyer(s) an idea of what they were facing and they could decide how to proceed from there.  Maybe Deslile knew he stood a snowballs chance in hell.  Or maybe he struck a deal as per Old Sweat.  That will of course come out.

 

[The Bread Guy]

R vs Stinchcomb requires the Crown to give full disclosure to the accused pre-trial.  In a case like this involving intelligence subject matter I don't know how that would pan out or if there's any redaction.  I wasn't involved in the NCIU when I was active so this is out of my field. 

For regular court stuff I had to cough up all my notes, files and reports to the defence as per.  It did give the accused and his lawyer(s) an idea of what they were facing and they could decide how to proceed from there.  Maybe Deslile knew he stood a snowballs chance in hell.  Or maybe he struck a deal as per Old Sweat.  That will of course come out.

Good point - I stand corrected for using the term "disclosure", when I meant "PUBLIC disclosure", or information sharing, in the more general sense, not in the legal definition.

 

[jollyjacktar]

From the CBC website.  Guess it answers my questions on what his career was worth.  Hope they throw the book at him.

Navy spy sold secrets to Russia
Canadian intelligence officer Jeffrey Delisle smuggled data on U.S., U.K. operations on thumb drive
CBC News Posted: Oct 10, 2012 8:06 AM AT Last Updated: Oct 10, 2012 12:57 PM AT

Canadian Forces Sub-Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle walked into the Russian Embassy in Ottawa in 2007 and offered to sell secrets to that country's military intelligence agency, beginning an espionage career that lasted almost four years, according to court material published by CBC News after the naval officer pleaded guilty to spying today.

Delisle, 41, pleaded guilty in a Halifax court Wednesday to breach of trust and two counts of passing information to a foreign entity between July 2007 and Jan. 13, 2011, in Ottawa and Kingston, Ont., and Halifax and Bedford, N.S., where he lived.

According to previously unpublished material from a bail hearing, Delisle walked into the embassy wearing a red ball cap and civilian clothes. He flashed his Canadian military identification and asked to meet with someone from GRU, the Russian military intelligence.

Delisle was posted to the security unit HMCS Trinity, an intelligence facility at the naval dockyard in Halifax. It tracks vessels entering and exiting Canadian waters via satellites, drones and underwater devices.

While there he worked on a system called the Stone Ghost, said CBC reporter Rob Gordon.

"It's a computer system that links the five eyes. The five eyes are the United States, Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. All their information is shared on the Stone Ghost computer.

"He would go to work every time with a thumb drive and download reams of information, which he would then send to the Russians on a monthly basis. And this went on for years and years and years."

He was paid about $3,000 a month for the information.

In 2009 when Delisle wanted to stop dealing with the Russians, they sent him a picture of his daughter walking to school in Halifax.

Sub-Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle covers his face leaving a Halifax court Wednesday where he pleaded guilty to breach of trust and two counts of passing information. (Steven Puddicombe/CBC)Shortly thereafter, the navy officer was told to meet his GRU handler in Brazil.

The Russians told Delisle they wanted him to be a pigeon, a spy term for a person who deals with all the secret operatives in an area. In this case it was Canada.

Delisle agreed and was handed $50,000 in cash. But when he couldn't get the money through Canadian security, the GRU gave him four $10,000 debit cards and $10,000 in cash.

When he landed at the Halifax airport, customs agents wanted to know why he was in Brazil, why he only spent a few days there and why he had thousands of dollars in cash.

Delisle told him he was on vacation, that he only spent a few days there because he didn't have much time and that he always liked to travel with cash.

Guards allowed him to enter Canada, but were suspicious and notified the military that they suspected some kind of wrongdoing.

It was then the military and RCMP began an investigation, which resulted in a raid on Delisle's house in December 2011.

Preliminary hearing cut short
Delisle's preliminary hearing was scheduled to start Wednesday morning, but the lawyer told the judge his client would plead guilty to all three charges.

The judge asked Delisle, "Do you understand the charges?" and he nodded yes, reported the CBC's Stephen Puddicombe.

He wore the same grey-blue hoodie and jeans he has worn to all his court appearances since his arrest.

After Delisle entered his plea, it was determined that his sentencing hearing will be Jan. 10 and 11.

He's the first Canadian to face charges under the country's Security of Information Act.

That act lays out an array of breaches, ranging from threatening the safety of the Forces to selling software and the technical details of operations.

The Criminal Code charge can net a five-year prison sentence, and convictions under the Security of Information Act can lead to life in prison.

Delisle was posted to the security unit HMCS Trinity, an intelligence facility at the naval dockyard in Halifax. It tracks vessels entering and exiting Canadian waters via satellites, drones and underwater devices. The centre is a multinational base with access to secret data from NATO countries.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/story/2012/10/10/ns-delisle-spy-hearing.html