Terror police hold woman aged 65 under Secrets Act

A WOMAN aged 65 has been arrested by counter-terrorism officers for allegedly breaking the Official Secrets Act.

The woman, who is contracted to carry out work for a Government department, was held in north London yesterday.

She was arrested under Section 1 of the 1911 Act, which covers the unlawful disclosure of information ‘prejudicial to the safety or interests of the state’. It has been used in the past in cases of alleged spying for foreign powers.

Police did not identify the Government department involved, but sources indicated it was not MI5, MI6 or GCHQ.

A Government spokesman said: ‘It would not be appropriate to comment further as there is an ongoing police investigation.’

In 2012, Royal Navy petty officer Edward Devenney, 30, was jailed for eight years after he tried to pass secrets about Britain’s nuclear submarines to Russian spies.

His amateurish scheme was quickly spotted, and the two ‘men from Moscow’ he met in a London hotel and at the British Museum were actually British intelligence agents.