Civil servant, 45, accused of leaking data to foreign agents
A civil servant has been accused of leaking confidential Government information to ‘handlers’ in a foreign intelligence service.
Yevgen McKeeffe, originally from Ukraine but with Irish citizenship, appeared at Dublin District Court yesterday where he was refused bail by Judge Máire Conneely.
It follows an investigation by the Garda Special Detective Unit (SDU).
The Dublin-based civil servant, 45, did not enter a plea.
Yevgen McKeeffe, originally from Ukraine but with Irish citizenship, appeared at Dublin District Court yesterday. Picture Colin Keegan, Collins, Dublin.
Mr McKeeffe, who changed his name by deed poll, is an executive officer, a junior management grade in the civil service.
He was arrested on Thursday afternoon at departures in Dublin Airport while attempting to leave the country with a one-way ticket.
The bail hearing was told the IT worker was allegedly about to leave the country to meet a contact and provide sensitive information which would place the State at risk.
He was charged under Section 9 of the Theft and Fraud Offences Act for the unlawful use of a computer in his employment which, on conviction, is punishable by a maximum 10-year sentence.
Reporting restrictions were imposed, preventing journalists from revealing his address, the specific Government department where he worked, or the overseas country implicated in the case.
However, the judge denied a defence application to prevent the media from naming the accused.
SDU Detective Sergeant Shay Palmer said he arrested Mr McKeeffe at departures and took him to a Garda station, where the accused ‘made no reply’ to the charge at 11.46 pm on Friday.
Objecting to bail, Det Sgt Palmer told the court an intelligence-led investigation was launched about a week ago into the civil servant who worked in an information management technology section, having previously been in the IT section.
He told the court further charges under the Official Secrets Act could be brought.
Det Sgt Palmer said the accused had worked on the department’s website and an online portal.
The judge noted the lines of inquiry were that the accused had allegedly obtained or transferred official department data, ‘and supplied them to a foreign intelligence service for personal gain’.
The SDU officer said the accused was about to fly to Turkey on Thursday before proceeding ‘on to his final destination where he would meet with his contact and share confidential information which had the potential of creating risk to the Irish State’.
The court heard Mr McKeeffe had previously travelled out of the country in 2025 under his current name, but used another identity on an earlier flight.
Gardaí seized electronic devices and documents during a search of his home.
His workplace was also examined and his desktop computer was seized. Gardaí accessed his work system and downloaded an audit log.
The court heard claims he accessed the portal site where the organisational structure and personnel details were photographed and ‘sent to his foreign contact’.
He allegedly earlier created an Excel file with personal details of staff in the department where he worked.
It was claimed he subsequently sent the pictures to a handler in a foreign jurisdiction using the Telegram app on his phone. He allegedly printed off a list of websites controlled by the department, photographed them and sent them to his handler.
It was alleged he explained that different departments had sub-departments with their own websites. The court heard he took pictures and videos of the websites, which were sent to his contact.
The bail hearing was told he had access to familiarisation events and agendas for different sections and he had sent pictures, PDFs and videos from his phone and home.
Det Sgt Palmer said Mr McKeeffe received payments in a foreign currency equivalent to between €250 and €260 for his efforts, with the money paid into his mother’s account.
The Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau has examined his mobile phone. The court heard the device contained a picture of the partial hierarchical organisational structure at his workplace, including management, and identified several individuals. A sample of the Excel document had personal details of staff.
The court heard Mr McKeeffe signed the Official Secrets Act when he started working in 2016. The SDU officer alleged he ‘clearly breached this’.
Det Sgt Palmer also raised flight risk concerns, noting the IT worker had used four other variations of names.
He accepted Mr McKeeffe had Irish citizenship but said he also had family in Ukraine’s Donbas region and no family ties to Ireland.
At the time of the arrest, he had €5,650 in cash and a one-way ticket. Questioned by defence solicitor Peter Connolly, Det Sgt Palmer agreed Mr McKeeffe had no prior criminal convictions.
The solicitor said his client had visited the disputed region in Ukraine during the war to visit family, after a gap of 16 or 17 years.
He contended there was no significant travel pattern and that it was understandable he was worried about his family in that area.
The officer agreed the accused was a single man and had been in Ireland lawfully since 2002 and had progressed to citizenship.
The court heard that, since he took up his Government job, he had been employed in two departments.
Mr Connolly disputed the detective sergeant’s stance that his client had no ties to Ireland. He claimed his client, who did not address the court, had a job with a pension and a mortgage in Ireland, and that his connections here did not just have to be family.
He told the court his client had changed his name as people had trouble pronouncing his original surname.
Mr Connolly said his client accepted that stringent bail conditions should apply and he would need a surety.
The defence proposed using the funds seized from the accused as bail money, but Det Sgt Palmer disagreed, saying the cash was now an exhibit in the case.
He told the judge his client agreed he had signed the Official Secrets Act when he commenced employment, but maintained ‘it was not explained to him in any detail’.
The judge ruled Mr McKeeffe was a flight risk and refused bail. His next hearing will be at Cloverhill District Court on Tuesday.
Legal aid was granted.
