If it was former Canadian Navy Sub-Lieutenant Jeffery Delisle’s intention to free himself of the burden of his financial troubles and to take some decisive action to counter his sense of helplessness when faced with the collapse of his marriage, any relief he may have felt after volunteering his services to the Russian military intelligence service (GRU) would have been relatively short-lived. The burden that would follow would be even harder to bear and the consequences not just personally tragic but nationally catastrophic.