Former BND chief arrested in German state-secrets case

August Hanning, the former head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service, has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, treason and obtaining classified information for foreign powers, German prosecutors said. The case involves allegations that sensitive intelligence was acquired and used after Hanning had left the agency. Hanning, 80, led the Federal Intelligence Service, or BND, from 1998 to 2005.

He later served as a senior official in the Interior Ministry and worked as a private security consultant. A former BND employee identified by prosecutors as Manfred D. was arrested separately and accused of helping him obtain classified material.

According to the prosecution, Manfred D. supplied Hanning with roughly 2,000 documents over several years in exchange for payment. He had worked as Hanning’s chief of staff and later held a similar role under Hanning’s successors, giving him access to internal intelligence and senior-level briefings.

Prosecutors allege that Hanning used some of the information to prepare an analysis for an officer of a foreign intelligence service. They said it was unclear whether the analysis reached its intended recipient. Hanning is also accused of maintaining contact with a representative of another foreign service and passing on political information, some of it based on material supplied by Manfred D.

The authorities have not named the foreign powers involved. Reports cited by Channels Television, ABC News Australia and DW said the case was not believed to involve Russia, although prosecutors have not publicly confirmed the identity of any country. Material allegedly accessed included information relating to the Iranian nuclear programme and the Russian armed forces, according to reporting cited by DW and ARD.

The investigation began after a 2025 search linked to a separate case involving Christina Block, an heiress accused by Hamburg prosecutors of arranging the abduction of two children in a custody dispute. Investigators reportedly found a storage device containing sensitive BND documents at premises connected to Hanning. The federal prosecutor’s investigation into Hanning and Manfred D.

began in May 2026. BND President Martin Jaeger said the agency had conducted extensive internal investigations before federal prosecutors took over. He said there could be no compromise on internal security.

Parliamentary intelligence overseers described the allegations as grave and called for greater scrutiny of former senior officials’ private consulting and lobbying activities. The arrests come as Germany is seeking to strengthen its intelligence services in response to growing security threats. The government has approved reforms that would give agencies broader powers, with legislation expected to reach parliament next year.

Any finding that a former BND chief sold or transferred secrets could therefore intensify scrutiny of both the agency’s safeguards and the proposed reforms. The allegations remain untested in court.