Charges Filed for Espionage on Behalf of Russia, Including Armenian Citizen

The Federal Prosecutor's Office of Germany has filed charges against three suspected spies operating in Frankfurt am Main, who are alleged to have acted on behalf of Russia. This was reported by Deutsche Welle.

According to the prosecution, they were hired by Russian intelligence services to spy on a former Ukrainian military officer in Germany. The defendants are citizens of Ukraine, Armenia, and Russia, accused of working for foreign intelligence services under particularly aggravating circumstances.

In early May 2024, the Armenian citizen received a task from Russian intelligence to locate a man in Germany, who is a former officer of the Ukrainian armed forces. To carry out the assignment, the defendant recruited two alleged accomplices.

On June 19, a meeting was expected to occur in a café located in the center of Frankfurt am Main, where the suspects were supposed to gather additional information about the former Ukrainian officer. However, the target had preemptively contacted the German police and did not show up for the meeting. The suspects were arrested and have been in custody since.

The Federal Prosecutor's Office suspects that the group's objective could have been to eliminate the former Ukrainian officer.