London - An army interpreter who worked for Britain's top general in Afghanistan was Friday sentenced to 10 years in jail for spying for Iran by a court in London, which said he should never have been given the sensitive job. Iranian-born Daniel James, 45, a corporal in the Territorial Army, was working as the personal interpreter of General David Richards, the then head of NATO forces in Afghanistan, when he was arrested in December 2006.
Passing sentence, Judge Roderick Evans said James had been a "ripe target" for the Iranians and should never have been appointed to such a sensitive position.
A jury at London's Old Bailey Criminal Court had earlier found James guilty of "communicating information to an enemy," the most serious of three charges he faced under Britain's Official Secrets Act.
The charge relates to e-mails James sent to Colonel Mohammad Heydari, the Iranian military attache in Kabul, the court heard. The jury was, however, unable to reach verdicts on two further related charges, the court said Friday.
James had always denied being a spy, claiming that he remained a loyal soldier. He bowed to the judge after the verdict was read out Friday.
Judge Evans said: "The gravest part of your offending and what made this case unique was that you engaged in this activity when you were actually in a war zone."
But he added that James was a "ripe target" for the Iranians because of his nationality, his disenchantment with the army and his "narcissistic" personality.
Evans said he agreed with James' defence council that he (James) should "never have been put in the sensitive position to which he was appointed."
General Richards, who has head of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan between May 2006 and February 2007, has in the meantime been promoted to take over as head of the British army.
Giving evidence in court earlier in the trial, Richards said he relied on James who translated his speeches and interpreted during sensitive high-level meetings.
Richards described James as a "complex and ebullient" character who was "affable company" and "doing a confident job."
He said he once threatened to sack the interpreter when he turned up three hours late for a speech, keeping the entire Afghan parliament waiting.
The court heard that James' activities had been "nipped in the bud" as his arrest came just two months after he befriended his contact at the Iranian embassy.
However, the prosecution called James' activities "the height of betrayal."
"His treachery could have cost the lives of British soldiers," prosecutor Mark Dennis said.
