Germany's ex-spy chief Hanning ordered held in custody on treason charges
A federal judge ordered former German spy chief August Hanning kept in custody on Wednesday, prosecutors said. The 80-year-old is charged with spying and attempted treason after his old office chief allegedly passed him about 2,000 secret files for pay. Prosecutors have not named the foreign spy services involved.
A former head of Germany's foreign spy agency will stay behind bars while prosecutors build their case. An investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe put the arrest warrant for August Hanning into effect on Wednesday, a spokeswoman for federal prosecutors said, dpa reported. That means the 80-year-old is held in custody before any trial.
Hanning led the BND, Germany's foreign intelligence service, from 1998 to 2005. He later served as a top official at the Interior Ministry before going into private business as a security adviser, DW reported. Police arrested him Tuesday in the Steinfurt district of North Rhine-Westphalia. Prosecutors accuse him of working as a foreign agent, treasonous spying, gathering state secrets and attempted treason.
Prosecutors say Hanning struck a deal around 2010 with Manfred D., who had run his office at the BND. Manfred D. stayed at the agency and kept passing him BND material for pay until June 2022. In all, he handed over about 2,000 documents, prosecutors say. Many were meant only for internal use. Manfred D. was ordered held on Tuesday. He is accused of aiding attempted treason.
Prosecutors say he used the material in his consulting work. In one case, they say, he used secret intelligence to write an analysis for an officer of a foreign spy service. It is not clear whether it reached that officer. They also say he passed political information for years to a contact from another foreign service. Prosecutors have not named either country. Der Spiegel named Azerbaijan as one buyer on Wednesday, DW reported. Azerbaijan's media council called that claim unfounded.
The case grew out of another probe, the BBC reported. Investigators looking into a 2023 child kidnapping case linked to steakhouse heiress Christina Block reportedly found a data device holding recent BND documents. Hanning denies any role in an earlier kidnapping attempt.
Lawmakers want tighter rules. Marc Henrichmann, who chairs parliament's spy oversight panel, said there must be "no stone left unturned." He said current limits on jobs for ex-officials may not be enough. Politicians from the Greens and the Social Democrats called for longer or lifelong cooling-off periods.
The BND has faced a scandal like this before. An officer was charged with treason in 2023 for allegedly passing secrets to Russia. His trial is still going on.
What we know: Hanning and his former aide are both in custody, accused of moving about 2,000 BND documents.
What we don't: Which foreign services received the material, and when a trial could start.
Where outlets agree DW and dpa both report that a federal judge ordered Hanning held in custody on Wednesday and that prosecutors have not named the foreign services involved.
Where they differ Der Spiegel named Azerbaijan as one buyer of the material, DW reported, but Azerbaijan's media council called that unfounded and prosecutors have named no country.