Germany arrests courier alleged to have worked for Russian intelligence

BERLIN

German authorities have arrested a man who is suspected of acting as a courier for Russian intelligence, prosecutors said Thursday.

A man identified as Arthur E. was arrested on Sunday at Munich Airport upon arriving from the US, the Federal Prosecutor's Office said in a statement.

He was an associate of German double agent Carsten L., who was arrested last month after investigators found that he passed on intelligence material to Russia.

Arthur E. took the intelligence material from Carsten L. and handed it to Russia, according to the prosecutors.

The suspect was brought before an investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice on Monday who ordered his pre-trial detention.

The investigations were done in close cooperation with the German intelligence service BND and US domestic spy service the FBI, the prosecutors said.

Carsten L, who has been in custody since December, was a senior intelligence officer for the BND, and was specialized in analyzing data obtained through worldwide surveillance of communications. Due to his role, he also accessed intelligence information shared by Germany's allies, according to local media reports.