Harry Dunn suspect's intelligence role not in US Embassy's immunity notes

The woman accused of killing Harry Dunn had not been named by the US Embassy as having a role in intelligence, court documents show.

Mr Dunn, 19, died in a crash near RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in 2019.

The suspect Anne Sacoolas returned to the US, claiming diplomatic immunity, and an extradition request was blocked.

A court in Virginia heard on Wednesday that both she and her husband were "employed by an intelligence agency in the US" at the time of the crash.

Her barrister told the court her work was "especially a factor" in her leaving the UK and she feared she would "not get a fair trial" if she returned.

However, in a note outlining Mrs Sacoolas's immunity following the crash on 27 August, the US Embassy only described her as "the spouse of a member of administrative and technical staff of the embassy".

The Embassy's note on 30 August asked UK officials "to remind appropriate authorities" not to arrest or detain her.

Mrs Sacoolas returned to the US, claiming diplomatic immunity, and was later charged with causing death by dangerous driving but an extradition request was blocked in January 2020.

The High Court has previously ruled Mrs Sacoolas had diplomatic immunity at the time of the crash because dependants of US Embassy employees were entitled to immunity, but the employees themselves were not.

The "anomaly" was closed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) last year.

Under the agreements at RAF Croughton dating back to 1995, anyone working at the base from the US as part of the "administrative and technical staff" would have their immunity pre-waived.

The comments about her intelligence role were made in the US court on Wednesday where an application to dismiss a civil claim for damages submitted by Mr Dunn's family is being heard.

Radd Seiger, a spokesman for the Dunn family, has described the claims by Mrs Sacoolas's barrister as an "astonishing revelation".

He said the note raised "some serious questions" and said the US authorities had been "less than candid" with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Mr Seiger also called on the UK government to explain when it became "aware of her real employment status".

A US State Department spokesman reiterated its position that Mrs Sacoolas "had immunity from criminal jurisdiction" at the time of the crash and "for the duration of her stay in the UK".

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson has said: "Anne Sacoolas was notified to the UK as a spouse with no official role, and the High Court determined she had diplomatic immunity while in the UK under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations."

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