Ex-Spy Chief Arrested In Germany On Suspicion Of Buying and selling State Secrets and techniques And Treason

BERLIN (AP) — A former head of Germany’s overseas intelligence service was arrested Tuesday on suspicion that he handed state secrets and techniques to a overseas intelligence service, the federal prosecutor’s workplace mentioned.

August Hanning, who led the Federal Intelligence Service, recognized by its German acronym BND, from 1998 to 2005, is “strongly suspected of treasonous espionage, spying out state secrets and techniques, tried treason, and espionage,” the federal prosecutor’s workplace mentioned in an announcement.

Hanning, 80, was arrested in Bad Toelz-Wolfratshausen in southern Germany. A former aide, recognized as Manfred D., was additionally arrested Tuesday in Steinfurt in western Germany and has been charged with aiding and abetting tried treason and treasonous espionage.

The assertion didn’t reveal who the 2 males had been suspected of spying for.

The premises of each males had been searched Tuesday.

The prosecutor’s workplace mentioned Manfred D. labored as Hanning’s chief of employees and later served as chief of employees for a number of subsequent BND presidents from 2012 till 2026.

“In his function, he had entry to confidential info,” the prosecutor’s workplace mentioned.

Both suspects are believed to have agreed in 2010 to have Manfred D. repeatedly transmit precious intelligence from the BND to Hanning in trade for fee, the assertion mentioned.

“The present findings recommend that, over time, Manfred D. offered Hanning with roughly 2,000 paperwork, a lot of which contained categorised info for use solely by the federal intelligence service for inside functions, notably for govt intelligence briefings,” the assertion mentioned.

Hanning used the knowledge in personal consulting work, and on one event “used categorised intelligence offered by Manfred D. to draft an evaluation for an officer of a overseas intelligence service.”

The workplace didn’t say which nation the overseas agent labored for and mentioned “it has but to be decided if the fabric reached the supposed recipient.”

The assertion added that “Hanning was in shut contact with a consultant of one other overseas intelligence service, to whom he handed on political info, partially based mostly on materials offered by Manfred D., for a number of years.”

Hanning got here beneath scrutiny in a separate investigation into the kidnapping of Hamburg businesswoman Christina Block’s youngsters from her ex-husband.

The investigation into that case led to Tuesday’s arrests.

The present proceedings stem from proof discovered throughout a search of Hanning’s residence in reference to that case, the federal prosecutor’s workplace acknowledged.

Hanning and a retired official from the Hamburg State Criminal Police Office are suspected of getting accepted a contract from Block in 2022 to abduct her youngsters whereas serving as executives of a safety agency, the general public prosecutor’s workplace introduced within the fall of 2025, in response to German information company dpa.

The Blocks are a outstanding Hamburg household greatest recognized for his or her widespread nationwide steakhouse chain Block House. The custody trial has acquired lots of consideration within the nation, with German tabloids providing heavy protection from the courtroom.

A message to the BND for remark was not instantly returned.

This model corrects the story to explain the suspect as the previous head of overseas, not home, intelligence.