New Zealand Military Court Accepts Soldier's Guilty Pleas to Espionage Charges

A New Zealand soldier admitted to sharing sensitive information with someone he believed to be a foreign agent, resulting in the first guilty plea on attempted espionage in the country. 

In late 2019, the soldier—whose name is being withheld by authorities at this time—began trying to pass along military information to an individual he believed to be a foreign agent. The information included how to access the New Zealand Army Headquarters, camp vulnerabilities, maps, and weapons.

The soldier also “tried to communicate military information including base telephone directories and maps, assessments of security weaknesses, his own identity card, and log-in details for a military network,” according to ABC News.

The supposed foreign agent, however, was an undercover police officer who was initially focused on finding out information about right-wing extremist groups. The soldier was arrested and initially faced 17 charges in 2020, including multiple counts of espionage, possession of objectionable material, and as computer misuse. In New Zealand, a conviction of espionage has a maximum 14-year prison sentence.

The original charges were withdrawn in March 2025 and three new charges were introduced—one each of attempted espionage, possession of an objectional publication, and dishonestly accessing a computer system. The soldier entered guilty pleas to the charges in March and they were formally confirmed by a court martial on 18 August, according to Radio New Zealand.

The soldier, who was based at Linton Military Camp, is reported to have links to the far-right groups Dominion Movement and Action Zealandia.

Prior to his arrest, the soldier was already of interest to law enforcement after the mass shooter attack on the two mosques in Christchurch. Authorities reported that he possessed extremist materials, including the shooter’s livestreamed video of the attack and manifesto on a hard drive. In New Zealand, possession of either the video or the manifesto without permission is a criminal offense, according to ABC News.

In a statement read by his lawyer, the soldier denied supporting the Christchurch attacker’s ideology and claimed that his association with the right-wing groups was limited to being friends with other individuals who shared similar opinions, RNZ reported. He also denied that members of these groups were involved in “untoward” or “terrorist” activities, according to The Guardian.

Although a sentencing hearing has not yet been announced, a “military panel accepted the guilty pleas and will decide the soldier’s sentence,” RNZ reported.