Paul William Hampel

Who is Paul William Hampel?

Paul William Hampel is the fictitious name of a man accused by the Canadian government of being a Russian spy masquerading as a Canadian citizen. He was arrested on November 14, 2006 at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport at about 6 p.m. just prior to boarding a plane departing Canada. When he was arrested, he had in his possession a fraudulent Ontario birth certificate, C$7,800 in five currencies, a shortwave radio, index cards with detailed notes about Canadian history, two digital cameras, three cell phones and five cell phone sim cards, some of them password-protected.

He was detained under a security certificate, signed by Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day and Immigration Minister Monte Solberg. According to the National Post, the certificate asserts that the individual "was a foreign national engaged in espionage, a member of an espionage organisation and 'a danger to the security of Canada.'" Specifically, he is suspected of being an elite agent in the SVR, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service. A Federal Court judge has found the certificate reasonable and ordered Hampel to be expelled from Canada.