China
Three people have been arrested in Germany over suspicion of spying for China, media reports said.
Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office said three German nationals, two men and a woman, were arrested for allegedly violating the country’s Foreign Trade and Payments Act, reported CNN.
“Allegations suggest the suspects have had ties to a Chinese secret service since before June 2022,” the German prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
One man, Thomas R., is alleged to have acted as an agent for a Chinese Ministry of State Security employee, gathering information on German military technologies, the American news channel reported.
The prosecutor’s office alleged that Thomas R. used the other two suspects - Herwig F. and Ina F., operators of a Düsseldorf-based company - to establish connections within the German scientific community.
Congratulating the prosecutor's office, Germany’s justice minister Marco Buschmann posted on X: "The Federal Prosecutor General arrested three people today for suspected scientific espionage for China and a violation of the Foreign Trade Act. I congratulate the GBA on this success in the investigation. This shows once again that we must be vigilant."
Episonage episode reported from the UK:
In a separate incident, Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said two persons will be charged for allegedly breaching the UK’s Official Secrets Act on behalf of China.
The two persons were identified as Christopher Berry, 32, and Christopher Cash, 29.
Nick Price, Head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: "The Crown Prosecution Service Counter Terrorism Division has today authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge two men with espionage offences.
"Christopher Berry, 32, and Christopher Cash, 29, will be charged with providing prejudicial information to a foreign state, China, and will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday, 26 April," Price said.
"Criminal proceedings against the defendants are active. No-one should report, comment or share information online which could in any way prejudice their right to a fair trial," Price said
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