LONDON — Britain’s counterterrorism police said Tuesday that they had arrested a member of the U.S. Army on suspicion of spying on behalf of Russia after a joint investigation with the FBI and U.S. military intelligence.

The 41-year-old man was arrested near Gloucester, England, about 100 miles west of London, and was in custody pending possible charges, officials said.

Officials did not name the man but said in a statement that he had been detained on suspicion of violating Section 1 and Section 3 of Britain’s National Security Act 2023. Those sections relate to obtaining or disclosing protected information and assisting a foreign intelligence service.

The police did not offer any other details, including about what the man was suspected of having done. In the police statement, FBI Director Kash Patel is quoted as saying, “This important arrest involves allegations of espionage, which is of the utmost concern to the United States and our allies.”

Patel added, “While this investigation is continuing, I want to send a clear message — this FBI has no tolerance for anyone who breaks their oath to the United States and whose actions endanger our national security and that of our partners.”

The Metropolitan Police also said in a statement, “The country to which the allegations relate is Russia.”

Brig. Gen. Sean Stinchon, the commanding general of the U.S. Army Counterintelligence Command, said in the police’s statement, “The alleged conduct of a senior soldier, entrusted with sensitive information, is a sobering reminder that insider threats are real and persistent.”

The counterterrorism police in Britain have investigated several high-profile terrorism cases related to the United States in the past months, including two cases of arrests near air bases in England where the American military operates.

In September, five men were arrested and then later released on bail near Royal Air Force Fairford in southern England. Two Latvian men were arrested in October on suspicion of a national security offense after breaching the perimeter of RAF Molesworth, about 70 miles north of London, in Cambridgeshire, England.

In the statement Tuesday, the police said the arrest of the U.S. Army member on suspicion of espionage was “not linked to any other ongoing Counter Terrorism Policing investigations.”

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Michael D. Shear/Kenny Holston
c. 2026 The New York Times Company