Overview
- A 31-year-old man from Swindon, Joshua Cammidge, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday and was remanded in custody after being formally charged under the National Security Act.
- The Crown Prosecution Service authorised two counts — assisting a foreign intelligence service (section 3) and preparatory conduct to commit sabotage (section 18) — which prosecutors say arose from contact with a representative of the GRU Volunteer Corps.
- Prosecutors told the court they allege Cammidge provided Google Maps screenshots for four drone factories near his home, conducted reconnaissance and researched a Wi‑Fi jamming device as part of the alleged scheme.
- Most of the case, the prosecution says, rests on material recovered from a mobile phone seized from the defendant, and Cammidge has denied any intent to carry out sabotage in a police interview.
- The case is sent to the Old Bailey with a next hearing on 25 September and comes after the UK designated the GRU Volunteer Corps a national security threat and created new offences to curb support for such groups, which carry prison terms of up to 14 years.