An employee of the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND), Carsten L., arrested on suspicion of espionage for Russia, could access top-secret data from the US and British intelligence agencies.
This was reported by the Focus and Welt publications.
The publications claim that Carsten L. is a high-ranking top-secret technical foreign intelligence unit officer who was engaged in assessing intelligence and had access to classified information, including allies’ intelligence data.
The Technical Intelligence Department of the Federal Intelligence Service receives more than 150 thousand intercepts daily. It provides about half of Germany’s daily intelligence.
The materials the arrested person had at his disposal for evaluation could contain intelligence data of BND’s friendly partner services obtained during eavesdropping operations. The US National Security Agency and the UK Government Communications Centre are among them.
The BND is seriously concerned that Carsten L., accused of high treason, could have passed the intelligence materials to the Russian side. They do not exclude that other employees could have worked for the Russian Federation.
As reported, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office of Germany arrested an employee of the Federal Intelligence Service of the country on suspicion of treason – the man is suspected of spying for Russia.
It is alleged that the man who works for the Federal Intelligence Service of Germany 2022 handed over to the Russian unique service information obtained during his professional activities. What exactly is at stake is not disclosed due to state secrets.
The case of espionage by a German intelligence officer in favor of Russia is rare, as the last such incident was recorded in 2014. Then Markus R. was arrested, who had been spying for the US intelligence services for several years. In 2016, he was sentenced to eight years in prison.