Trial begins for ex-German intelligence officer charged as Russian spy

The trial of a former German intelligence officer accused of providing state secrets to Russia started in a Berlin court on Wednesday.

Carsten L. was arrested last year and charged with treason for leaking secret information to a Russian intelligence agency. His accomplice, businessman Arthur E., was arrested earlier this year.

During the first hearing, the prosecutors started reading out their indictment, in which they accused Carsten L. of printing out secret material from his computer at the Federal Intelligence Service's (BND) headquarters and sharing this sensitive information with the Russians.

Arthur E. was accused of acting as a courier and passing on this material to intelligence officers in Russia. They allegedly received around €400,000 ($431,000) from the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in 2022 for providing secret information.

On Wednesday, prosecutors requested that the hearings be closed to public, as the indictment contained information that is classified as secret. But defense lawyers firmly opposed their request.

The judges interrupted the trial after almost two and a half hours and announced that they will announce their decision on whether or not to hold closed hearings on Thursday.