A former Royal Marine charged recently with spying for Hong Kong has died, the police said on Tuesday.
Thames Valley Police said a man found dead on Sunday evening in Grenfell Park, Maidenhead, had been formally identified as Matthew Trickett.
His death is being treated as unexplained.
They were charged with agreeing to “undertake information gathering, surveillance, and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service,” namely Hong Kong, and forcing entry into a UK residential address on May 1.
They had all been bailed and were due to appear at the Old Bailey on Friday.
Thames Valley Police said officers found Mr. Trickett in the park at around 5:15 p.m. on Sunday following a report from a member of the public. Emergency treatment was commenced, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A police cordon was in place in Grenfell Park on Tuesday evening with several officers stationed next to a black forensics tent located close to a children’s playground.
More officers were positioned at vantage points and paths around the park.
The police said a post-mortem will be conducted “in due course,” and appealed to anyone with information to come forward.
Mr. Trickett was on bail and required to register at a police station regularly, so Thames Valley Police has also referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), a standard procedure in a death following police contact.
The IOPC has assessed that referral and decided that the matter should be investigated by Thames Valley Police’s Professional Standards Department, the police said.
A family statement said: “We are mourning the loss of a much-loved son, brother, and family member. We would be grateful if the press would respect our privacy at this difficult time and refrain from intruding on our grief.”
Mr. Trickett’s solicitor Julian Hayes, senior partner at Berris Law, said: “It has sadly been confirmed by Thames Valley Police that the body found in Grenfell Park, Maidenhead, on Sunday was that of our client Matthew Trickett.
“We are naturally shocked at this news and supporting his family as best we can.
“The death is currently being treated as unexplained by the police and further investigations are still ongoing.”
Mr. Trickett was formerly employed by the UK Border Force at Heathrow Airport, before joining Home Office Immigration Enforcement on Feb. 21.
He was also the director of MTR Consultancy, a security firm formed in April 2021.
Mr. Trickett, Chi Leung Wai, 38, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, were charged under the National Security Act after an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command which saw a total of 11 people arrested.
The charges allege that between Dec. 20, 2023 and May 2, 2024, Mr. Trickett, Mr. Wai, and Mr. Yuen agreed to undertake information gathering, surveillance, and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service.
It is also alleged that on May 1 they forced entry into a UK residential address, being reckless as to whether the prohibited conduct, or course of conduct of which it forms part, would have an interference effect.
The defendants have not yet entered pleas to the charges.
The other seven men and one woman who were not charged were released from custody on or before May 10.
