American arrested in Germany for allegedly colluding with China

An American has been arrested for espionage in Germany after being accused of colluding with China. Germany’s federal prosecutor office said that the suspect, who was only identified as Martin D., was arrested Thursday in Frankfurt and that his home was being searched.

The accused, who until recently worked for the U.S. Armed Forces in Germany, is strongly suspected of having agreed to act as an intelligence agent for a foreign secret service, the statement said. Earlier this year, he contacted Chinese government agencies and offered to transmit sensitive information from the US military to a Chinese intelligence service, according to German intelligence.

The suspect had obtained the information in question in the course of his work in the U.S. army, the prosecutor’s statement said, without giving any further information. German news agency dpa reported it appeared the suspect had not managed to transfer any data to Chinese authorities before the arrest.

Investigators in the European nation have exposed several people suspected of spying for China this year. Last month, German authorities arrested a Chinese national accused of passing information on a major air freight hub to a man who is suspected of spying for China.

In April, a man who worked for a prominent German far-right lawmaker in the European Parliament was arrested on suspicion of spying for China. News of that arrest came a day after three Germans suspected of spying for China and arranging to transfer information on technology with potential military uses were arrested in a separate case.

The trio, named as married couple Herwig and Ina F. and their alleged accomplice Thomas R., are accused of taking part in an information-gathering project funded by Chinese state agencies, as well as illegally exporting a laser to China.

The trio is also alleged to have smuggled a sophisticated laser with military applications into China, according to the Financial Times. They allegedly did not declare this and get permission from the EU, which is illegal.

This came as German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser warned of the ‘considerable danger posed by Chinese espionage in business, industry and science.’ At the time of their arrest, the suspects were also allegedly in further negotiations about research projects that could be useful for the expansion of China’s maritime combat capabilities.

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