Former German Spy Chief Arrested on Espionage and Treason Charges

August Hanning, 80, former head of Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) from December 1998 to November 2005, was arrested on October 6, 2026, at his home in Nordwalde near Münster on suspicion of espionage, treason, disclosure of state secrets, and working as a secret service agent. His former chief of staff, identified only as Manfred D. under German privacy law, was arrested simultaneously in Bavaria on charges of aiding and abetting attempted treason and espionage.

Prosecutors allege the two men arranged their scheme around 2010. From 2012 to March 2026, Manfred D. served as chief of staff to Hanning's successors at the BND, giving him access to classified documents. Over many years, prosecutors say D. provided Hanning with approximately 2,000 classified documents in exchange for payment. Many contained information restricted to internal BND use, including executive intelligence briefings.

According to the federal prosecutor's office, Hanning used classified intelligence to draft an analysis for an officer of a foreign intelligence service and maintained close contact with a representative of another foreign intelligence service, to whom he passed political information—some derived from documents provided by D.—over several years. The identity of the foreign intelligence services involved has not been disclosed by prosecutors. One German media report indicated the case does not involve Russia. Hanning worked as a private consultant after leaving the BND and is considered well-connected with government and business sectors in Russia and China. It remains unclear whether the material reached its intended recipients.

After leaving the BND, Hanning served as state secretary at the Federal Interior Ministry until November 2009. He was arrested at his home early Tuesday, while Manfred D. was arrested in Bavaria. Authorities conducted simultaneous searches at both suspects' properties and in Berlin. Both men were scheduled to appear before judges on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively.

The investigation came to light during a separate high-profile case involving businesswoman Christina Block, an heiress accused of orchestrating the kidnapping of her children in a custody dispute. Hanning is also under investigation for allegedly helping Block with an attempted earlier kidnapping, which he denies. Investigators discovered an electronic data storage device containing sensitive BND documents while examining that matter.

German parliament's intelligence oversight committee chair Marc Henrichmann said Germany "will not tolerate the betrayal of secrets," stating that "whoever allies themselves with the enemies of our liberal democracy will be found out." Opposition lawmaker Konstantin von Notz called the allegations "deeply troubling" and called for a "swift and thorough investigation." The case has been described as Germany's largest espionage scandal in recent years, following a 2023 case in which a high-ranking German intelligence officer was charged with passing state secrets to Russia.