Event 1f5b1d44-9477-4252-8f2f-099024383d4e

Approved event from Hybrid War Tracker

Status: Approved Confidence: Low Classification: Intelligence & Espionage > Human Intelligence (HUMINT) > Recruitment of locals Country: Austria Where: Land Tag: creating-and-passing-tag-test Tag: Austria Tag: Russia Tag: Espionage Tag: Intelligence Tag: Wirecard Tag: Jo-Jan Marsalek Tag: Thomas Schellenbacher Aggressor Confidence: High

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz0pnjv1zy5o

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Event Time

➕

Created

✏️

Updated

Summary

Headline: Ex-intelligence officer accused of betraying Austria in Russia spying trial

Short Summary: Former Austrian intelligence officer Egisto Ott is on trial in Vienna accused of spying for Russia and betraying Austria, linked to the Wirecard scandal and Russian espionage.

Extended Summary: Egisto Ott, 63, a former Austrian intelligence official, denies charges of providing secret information to Russian agents, including Jo-Jan Marsalek, former executive at the collapsed Wirecard payments company. Ott is accused of unauthorized collection of personal data, abuse of authority, and espionage against Austria, allegedly supporting Russian secret intelligence activities from 2015 and 2018. Prosecutors claim Ott handed over sensitive information like locations, vehicle registrations, and internal police databases to Moscow. The trial highlights longstanding fears of Russian espionage threatening Austria. Marsalek, an Austrian-German fugitive, is alleged to have provided classified materials to Russian intelligence and fled to Moscow after the Wirecard collapse in 2020. Additional accused includes Thomas Schellenbacher, an Austrian MP, charged with assisting Marsalek's escape and linked to Russian espionage and far-right political activities in Austria. The case exposes complex espionage networks operating in Central Europe linked to Moscow.

Description

Egisto Ott, a former Austrian intelligence official, is on trial in Vienna accused of spying for Russia by handing over information to Russian intelligence officers and Jo-Jan Marsalek, linked to collapsed Wirecard payments firm. The prosecution alleges Ott betrayed Austria by collecting personal data without authorization, supporting Russian secret intelligence, and abusing authority, facing up to five years in prison if found guilty. The case is part of a broader espionage scandal involving Marsalek, an Austrian fugitive wanted by German police for alleged fraud who reportedly worked with Russian intelligence services.

Event Classification

Aggressor Event

Rationale

The article clearly identifies the actions of Egisto Ott and associates as hostile espionage activity for Russian intelligence against Austria, constituting aggressor behavior. There is no description of allied defense measures in this article.

Evidence

Quotes

The prosecutor told the court that Ott, 63, was 'not romantic about Russia' but had acted out of financial motives and frustration with his career. 'Simply put, this was betraying the country,' he said.

Prosecutors allege that Marsalek commissioned him to obtain a laptop containing secret electronic security hardware used by EU states for secure electronic communication.

Ott is alleged to have handed over three Austrian government cell phones to Russia via Marsalek.

Ott told the court he had not handed over the cell phones to anyone - 'certainly not to the Russian secret service' - and had 'physically destroyed' the devices by smashing them with a hammer.

Marsalek, who was Wirecard's Chief Operating Officer, has since been charged with fraud and embezzlement and is believed to have become an intelligence asset for the FSB, Russia's security service.

Schellenbacher was an MP for the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), accused of enabling Russian espionage and acting as 'an extension of Russian arm' in Austria.

Source

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz0pnjv1zy5o