‘Secret Agent’ Who Stole Sensitive Equipment Walks

Police are appealing a decision to allow a former military spy who stole sensitive operational equipment to walk away without conviction. Airforce Corporal Richard Graham was discharged without conviction in July after stealing from the Defence Force, including equipment requiring high security clearance, and for offering to supply methamphetamine.

Police have appealed that District Court decision, by Judge Belinda Pidwell, arguing she made errors in law in assessing the seriousness of his offending. Corporal Graham’s lawyer, Karl Trotter, told the High Court in Auckland his client had been acting as a “secret agent” in a highly stressful situation overseas. While overseas he said Graham started using drugs which he found “helpful” and “highly effective” for his job and was likely sparked by stress. “When he came back into the military it’s important to understand because of the separation his local command structure knew nothing of his activities.” It is not known what was stolen from the military other than what was described as “sensitive operational equipment”. When asked by RNZ what that meant, Mr Trotter said he could not say and Crown lawyer Scott McColgan said the Defence Force had not given him any more detail. He also took tools from contractors working at the Whenuapai Airforce base. Mr Trotter said the Crown was submitting that the offending could not fit within a discharge without conviction and normally he would agree. However he said this was a rare case.

“This is far from ordinary, it is quite exceptional.” He argued Mr Graham had gone to extraordinary lengths to recover the stolen items and to go through rehabilitation, and the police had failed to prove an error of law.

“There’s nothing that says anywhere in the law that one can’t get a discharge for this offending.”