Secret services: Pretrial detention for suspected US military spy for China

After an American was arrested for suspected spying for China, the accused is in custody. The investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe executed the arrest warrant, as a spokeswoman for the Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced. The highest German prosecution accuses the man of offering sensitive US military information to a Chinese intelligence service.

Until recently, he worked for the US armed forces in Germany and in this context he came across the information that was supposed to be transmitted. This year he contacted Chinese government authorities and offered to pass it on. What the information was about remained unclear at first.

According to current knowledge, no data was transferred to Chinese authorities. According to information from the German Press Agency, the man is said to have been dissatisfied with his former employer. The investigation must now clarify whether this was possibly a motive on the part of the American.

Officials from the Federal Criminal Police Office had previously arrested the man in Frankfurt am Main. The accused’s apartment was also searched.

The Federal Prosecutor’s Office worked closely with the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution during the investigation, the statement said. As the highest prosecution authority in Germany, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office is responsible for cases of espionage and terrorism.

Several espionage cases in 2024

This is not the first time this year that someone has been arrested in Germany for allegedly spying for a Chinese secret service. In April, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office had three Germans arrested in Düsseldorf and Bad Homburg who were said to have passed on information about military technology. The arrest of an ex-employee of AfD MEP Maximilian Krah also caused a stir at the time. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office accuses the arrested man of having transmitted information from the EU Parliament. He is also said to have spied on Chinese opposition members in Germany.

At the beginning of October, the Karlsruhe prosecution in Leipzig had a Chinese woman arrested for suspected espionage who worked for a logistics service company at Leipzig/Halle Airport. She is said to have passed on information about flights, freight and passengers at the Saxon airport to the former Krah employee – this primarily concerned the transport of military equipment and people with connections to a German defense company.

However, the most recent cases of people who provide their knowledge to a foreign secret service and are called “self-providers” in the security authorities have recently occurred primarily in connection with suspected espionage for Russia.