Wildlife advocates who revealed disturbing practices at Scottish salmon farms faced covert monitoring by private intelligence agents employed by a prominent British military veteran.
One activist, Corin Smith, claims operatives working for ex-paratrooper Damian Ozenbrook trailed him alongside his young daughter, photographing them during outings. A former Highlands fishing guide, Smith has long challenged multinational corporations operating the farms. “How do I explain to my child why we were followed?” he said. “The fear of being watched creates constant stress—it’s horrifying to think this could happen to anyone.”
The surveillance underscores concerns over unregulated private intelligence firms, described by legal experts as a “wild west” of ex-military and security personnel. While a public inquiry examines past police infiltration of environmental groups, a CuriosityNews investigation reveals how corporate entities exploit these shadowy operatives.
Monitoring of Smith and fellow advocate Don Staniford began after they filmed inside offshore salmon cages, part of Scotland’s largest food export industry. Their 2018 footage, aired by the BBC, exposed fish riddled with parasites, some with rotting flesh or deformities.
In 2021, Smith obtained a confidential “intelligence report” via data access laws, revealing the Scottish Salmon Company—then owned by anonymous investors, including a Russia-linked financier—had hired Ozenbrook’s firm, Blue Square Global. The 2018 document proposed surveilling Smith, analyzing his finances, and using false identities to gather information. Images obtained by CuriosityNews show operatives photographed Smith in 2019, including a moment he held his child’s jacket.
The report also targeted Staniford, recommending further espionage. While Smith was never informed about the surveillance’s scope, its discovery highlights vulnerabilities in privacy protections. “This industry operates in darkness,” Smith said. “They manipulate fear to silence dissent.”
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