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Germany Arrests Former Intelligence Chief Accused of Passing Secrets to Foreign Spy Services
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Germany has arrested former Federal Intelligence Service (BND) chief August Hanning on suspicion of espionage and treason, accusing him of using classified information in contacts with foreign intelligence services.
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According to Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office on October 6, Hanning and former BND employee Manfred D. were detained under warrants issued by the Federal Court of Justice. Authorities also searched properties linked to the suspects in Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Berlin.
Prosecutors allege that Manfred D. supplied Hanning with around 2,000 BND documents over several years in exchange for payment. Many contained classified information intended exclusively for internal intelligence use, including material prepared for briefings of senior German officials.
Hanning allegedly used some of the information in his private consulting work. Prosecutors said that on one occasion he used classified intelligence “to draft an analysis” for an officer of a foreign intelligence service. Authorities have not disclosed which foreign country was involved or whether the material reached its intended recipient.
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Investigators also allege that Hanning maintained close contact for several years with a representative of another foreign intelligence service and passed political information partly based on material obtained from Manfred D.
Hanning headed the BND, Germany’s foreign intelligence agency, from 1998 to 2005. According to the BBC on October 6, the investigation emerged after authorities discovered classified BND documents on an electronic storage device during a separate investigation in 2025.
The arrest comes a day after current BND chief Martin Jäger warned that Germany has become an increasingly important target for foreign intelligence operations, sabotage, and political interference, particularly from Russia.
Speaking before the Bundestag on October 5, Jäger said Moscow was waging an undeclared “shadow war” against Germany and warned of further attempts at intimidation and interference.
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