The espionage case against Germany's former intelligence chief took a new turn on October 7: an investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe issued a formal arrest warrant, placing 80-year-old August Hanning in detention. His lawyer spoke out publicly for the first time, admitting Hanning possessed classified documents but denying he passed intelligence to a foreign power or took payment. Azerbaijan also denied any connection to the case.
Reuters reported that the investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe issued the arrest warrant on Wednesday, allowing authorities to keep Hanning in custody. The Office of the Federal Prosecutor accuses him of being "strongly suspected" of treasonous espionage, gathering state secrets, attempted treason, and acting as an intelligence agent. Hanning led the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) from 1998 to 2005 — the first former BND chief detained since the agency's founding in the mid-1950s. Reuters said the case could emerge as one of the biggest leaks of classified documents in Germany since the end of the Cold War, raising concerns that foreign intelligence agencies could cut Germany off from important information sharing.
Hanning's lawyer gave his first public response to the German newspaper Die Welt on Wednesday, drawing a defense line: "While it is true that he was in possession of confidential documents, the allegation that he passed on information contained therein to the detriment of Germany, let alone for payment, is incorrect." Prosecutors allege that starting in the spring of 2010, Hanning paid his former chief of staff Manfred D. for roughly 2,000 classified documents through June 2022, and at least once used the material to prepare an analysis for a foreign intelligence officer. The lawyer's statement concedes "possession" while contesting the two key links: "passing on" and "payment."
The identity of the foreign buyer remains a mystery. Prosecutors have never officially named the foreign intelligence service, and it is unclear whether the analysis ever reached its intended recipient. Der Spiegel reported late Tuesday that investigators were pursuing a possible connection to Azerbaijan, saying Hanning had been in contact with an agent from the country. On Wednesday, Azerbaijan's Media and Broadcasting Council issued a statement calling the allegations "groundless disinformation," adding that "the malicious intent of the forces behind this disinformation operation is to damage Azerbaijan-Germany relations." German media citing investigators have said Russia is not involved.
Manfred D., the former chief of staff arrested alongside Hanning, appeared before the Federal Court of Justice on Tuesday afternoon and was ordered into pretrial detention. He faces charges of aiding and abetting attempted treason and treasonous espionage — prosecutors say he passed roughly 2,000 documents to Hanning while serving as chief of staff to successive BND presidents between 2012 and 2026. Current BND president Martin Jaeger said the agency launched extensive internal investigations as soon as suspicions emerged, adding that "there can be no compromises on internal security." Under German law, treason and espionage each carry six months to life imprisonment; the judicial proceedings are only just beginning.