An employee of the German Bundeswehr was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly engaging in espionage for Russia. He is accused of working for a foreign secret service. The man’s home and work were searched.
According to the report, since May of this year, the suspect has contacted the Russian consulate general in Bonn and the Russian embassy in Berlin several times “of his own accord” and offered to cooperate. In doing so, he provided information from his professional activity so that it could in turn be forwarded to a Russian intelligence service.
The Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology and Use of the Bundeswehr in Koblenz, where the man works, is responsible, among other things, for purchasing defense technology and equipping the Bundeswehr with material and weapons. The suspect was brought before the examining magistrate on Wednesday and taken into custody.
More cases in November and December
Before him, other employees of the German Bundeswehr had already been arrested on suspicion of espionage. In December last year, an employee of the Federal Intelligence Service was arrested on suspicion of treason because he also allegedly forwarded classified information to a Russian intelligence service. This crime is punishable in Germany by imprisonment for at least five years or even life imprisonment.
In November 2022, a former reserve officer in the Bundeswehr was found guilty of espionage in the service of Russia. A court sentenced him to one year and nine months of probation. The man even provided the Russian military intelligence service GRU with information for years, including on the effects of the 2014 EU sanctions against Russia. He was driven by an “extremely pro-Russian attitude and the urge to make himself popular and important among Russian military personnel,” it was said at the time.
Also espionage from China
Security experts spoke of a spike in espionage attempts in Germany, including from China (see video above). The German federal government also declared 40 members of the Russian embassy undesirables and the Austrian government last expelled four Russian diplomats in February.
Source: Krone
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