In an interview with SBS News, ASIO boss Mike Burgess said revealing the politician's identity could compromise future investigations.
The mystery former politician who engaged in espionage for a foreign country was a serving member of an Australian parliament when they were recruited, SBS News can reveal. The Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Mike Burgess originally outlined the bombshell spying case in his annual threat assessment on Wednesday. He is refusing to reveal their identity, political party or whether they were a member of a federal, state or territory parliament.
has documented how the politician "sold out" their country, party and former colleagues to advance the interests of the foreign government. The politician also proposed to connect the spies with a member of a prime minister’s family. That plot did not go ahead.
investigations. "If I shared the details of who it was, they might figure out how I worked out who it was, or how my organisation and that's our secret sauce, and I need to protect that." Burgess said the politician was actively engaged before the 2018 foreign interference laws were passed in the federal parliament, and the activity was not a criminal offence at the time.
has documented was for initial contact to be made on social networking sites claiming to be from a fictional company, offering payment for reports on Australian politics, economics and security with extra fees for exclusive or insider information. Burgess said those who agree to work for foreign governments were often motivated by money, political beliefs, feeling indebted or blackmail. He refused to provide information about what drove this politician.
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