Former German army officer sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for working as Russian agent – JURIST

A former German army officer was sentenced to three years and six months in prison by the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court on Monday for working for the Russian government as an agent and disclosing official secrets.

According to the prosecution, the accused passed on information to the Russian secret service that he had obtained while working in the Bundeswehr procurement office in Koblenz. The former military captain sent documents for official use only to the Russian Embassy in Berlin and the Consulate General in Bonn from May 2023. The accused offered to cooperate and provide further documents to the Russian state. According to the Higher Regional Court in Düsseldorf, the documents sent could harm the security of the Federal Republic of Germany because they contain information about military equipment.

The accused was spotted during surveillance of Russian facilities by the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which led to a search of his home in Koblenz in December 2023, leading to his arrest. The search and arrest of the defendants were carried out by the German Federal Police (BKA) in close cooperation with the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD).

The defendant confessed during the trial to serving as a spy for Russia, saying his motivations were fear of nuclear war due to the war in Ukraine and that he wanted to keep his family safe. The accused said he regrets contacting the Russian embassy and consulate and acknowledges his mistake.

The German federal prosecutor's office, which led the prosecution, requested a three and a half year prison sentence on May 14 when the case was opened, with the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court granting this request. The defense asked the judge to make a decision at the court's discretion.

The verdict is not yet final, as the accused and the Federal Attorney General have the possibility of appealing, which is expected to be decided by the German Federal Court of Justice.