Senior U.S. Army soldier arrested in U.K. on suspicion of working with Russian intelligence

LONDON — A senior U.S. Army soldier was arrested in the U.K. on suspicion of assisting Russian intelligence, British police said Tuesday.

The 41-year-old man was arrested “as part of an investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing” near the ⁠city of Gloucester, ​in the west ⁠of England, London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement, adding that he remained in custody at a police station in the British capital.

He was ​arrested ⁠on suspicion of ‌offences under sections 1 and 3 of the National Security Act, ‌the statement said. These relate to obtaining ‌or disclosing protected information and assisting a foreign intelligence service.

“The country to which the allegations relate is Russia,” the statement added.

FBI Director Kash Patel was quoted in the statement as saying that the arrest was “important” and “involves allegations of espionage, which is of the utmost concern to the United States and our allies.”

The FBI, he added, “has no tolerance for anyone who breaks their oath to the United States and whose actions endanger our national security and that of our partners.”

Brig. Gen. Sean Stinchon, the commanding general of U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command was also quoted in the police statement.

“The alleged conduct of a…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/world