In brief
Former BND chief August Hanning was arrested for espionage and treason after allegations that he shared classified intelligence with foreign services. Prosecutors say he used a massive trove of documents to aid foreign spies and spent years in contact with a foreign intelligence representative. Police also arrested a former BND staffer who supplied Hanning with 2,000 classified files for payment. The case marks a new wave of scrutiny over Germany’s top intelligence agency.
Former BND chief August Hanning has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, treason and illegally obtaining classified information for a foreign power, the German Federal Prosecutor's Office says.
Hanning led the Federal Intelligence Service from 1998 to 2005 before moving into private consulting. Prosecutors say he used classified material to draft an analysis for a foreign intelligence officer and maintained contact with another spying service, though the parties involved remain unnamed.
Police also detained former BND staffer Manfred D, who allegedly passed roughly 2,000 classified documents to Hanning for money. D, who served as bureau chief until this year, faces charges of aiding and abetting treasonous espionage.
The arrests were reportedly made at Hanning's home near Münster and in Bavaria. Both men are due in court in the coming weeks.
Investigators uncovered an electronic storage device containing sensitive BND data during a separate case involving German heiress Christina Block. Hanning is also accused of passing political information to a foreign intelligence representative for several years.
This is not the first BND scandal; a senior officer was charged in 2023 for passing state secrets to Russia.
These developments raise concerns about the integrity of Germany's top intelligence agency amid growing scrutiny of inter‑agency security.
By Olivia Ireland | Published 1 hour ago
