Daniel Khalife made headlines in September 2023 when he escaped from HMP Wandsworth where he was awaiting trial accused of spying for Iran.
Here is a timeline of events leading up to his conviction.
– September 2018: Two weeks before his 17th birthday, Daniel Khalife joins the Army, completing his basic 23-week military training at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, finishing in February 2019.
– March 2019: Khalife moves on to his 12-month specialist Phase 2 training at the Defence School of Communication and Information Systems at Blandford Forum in Dorset.
– April 2019: Khalife creates a contact, visible on both of his iPhones, with a +98 number – the dialling code for Iran. He later tells police he initially made contact with a well-known individual, connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Hamed Ghashghavi.
– June 2019: An English-speaking handler is in contact with Khalife, with later examination of his phones showing he is in communication with an “Ir” contact over Telegram.
– August 2019: He is instructed to travel to London to pick up cash left by his handlers, with the intention that he should travel to Iran. Khalife collects £1,500 left in a dog poo bag in Mill Hill Park in Barnet, north London.
– March 2020: The signaller is posted to the 16th Signal Regiment in Stafford, a multi-role unit which delivers information and communication services to the armoured brigades’ headquarters, among other responsibilities.
– August 2020: Khalife travels to Istanbul in Turkey for six days to “deliver a package” to Iranian intelligence. Messages show he offers a contact saved as “David Smith” to stay in the Army for 25+ years, stealing information to order. He also gives a description of an internal military system which would identify service personnel.
– February to April 2021: Khalife stays in contact with Iranian handlers while posted to Fort Hood in Texas. He takes a series of screenshots of systems marked “Secret”, including a password record sheet.
– June 2021: Khalife uses information from an internal list of promotions to look up the full names of soldiers, including some in the special forces, on an HR system. He makes a handwritten list including their service number, rank, initials, surname and unit, including the SAS and SBS.
– October 2021: Khalife is told by his Iranian contacts to travel to Kensal Green Cemetery in north-west London. Later that afternoon, he goes to the popular Portobello Road in Notting Hill. The reason, he later tells police, was to receive cash.
– November 2021: Khalife makes two anonymous calls to MI5 from an unregistered mobile, having earlier tried to email MI6 using the “Contact Us” page on the intelligence service’s website. MI5 makes nine attempts to return his calls, but is not able to reach him.
– January 2022: Khalife is arrested for allegedly gathering information for Iran.
– January 2023: The signaller places a device on his desk and flees his barracks, having realised he is facing serious criminal charges. He leaves a note saying his options are taking his own life or absconding. A soldier who arrives in the room pulls wires out of the device to prove it is safe.
– January 26 2023: Khalife is found in the town of Stone, Staffordshire, not far from his barracks, having spent more than three weeks living in a stolen van.
– May 2023: Khalife is officially discharged from the Army.
– September 6 2023: Khalife escapes from HMP Wandsworth in south-west London while on remand by strapping himself to the underside of a food delivery lorry.
He visits Richmond and goes to Mountain Warehouse, Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s stores while on the run.
– September 9 2023: Three days after his escape, Khalife is arrested on a canal towpath in west London with a number of items including a mountain bike, a Waitrose bag containing a phone, receipts, a diary and about £200 in cash.
– October 8 2024: Khalife’s trial begins at Woolwich Crown Court.
– November 28 2024: After 23 hours and 10 minutes of deliberation, a jury convicts Khalife of spying for Iran. He is cleared of perpetrating a bomb hoax. He now faces a lengthy prison sentence.
