A Munich court handed down on Thursday an eight-year prison sentence to a German former intelligence agent who spied for both the CIA and the Russian secret service because he wanted to “experience something exciting”.
Markus Reichel had admitted to handing over “scores of documents and internal information” to the CIA, including names and addresses of agents for the Federal Intelligence Service or BND, in exchange for about 95,000 euros.
Some 200 of those documents sent to the US spy agency were deemed very sensitive, and even included papers detailing the BND’s counter-espionage strategies.
The 32-year-old had also delivered three classified documents to the Russian secret service.
Convicting Reichel on two counts of treason and breach of official secrets, as well as five counts of corruption, the court said his actions risked causing “serious detriment to Germany’s external security”.
The prosecution had sought 10 years, but the court described Reichel’s lack of previous criminal record and his confession as mitigating factors.