Closed-door trial of Soviet/Russian sleeper agents starts in Germany
January 16, 2013 11 Comments
By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
A married couple accused of spying on Germany on behalf of the Soviet Union and Russia for over two decades has gone on trial in Stuttgart. Andreas Anschlag, 54, and his wife, Heidrun, 48, were arrested in October 2011 by GSG-9, the elite counter-terrorism and special operations unit of the German Federal Police. They were later charged with having spied since at least 1990 for the Soviet KGB’s First Chief Directorate and its post-Soviet successor organization, the SVR. German federal prosecutors also accuse the couple of document forgery, since their Austrian passports, which they used to enter West Germany from Mexico in 1988 (Andreas) and 1990 (Heidrun) are believed to be counterfeit. There is also speculation that the couple’s surname may in fact be an alias given to them by their intelligence handlers. Upon entering West Germany in 1988 and 1990, the Anschlags initially settled in Aachen, on the German-Belgian border, before moving to Meckenheim, a small town with a population of less than 30,000 located a few miles southwest of Bonn. They concentrated on blending into German society, while raising their son daughter and leading what their neighbors describe as a “discreet life”. Over the years, they managed to recruit a number of informants, including a Dutch diplomat identified by authorities in Holland only as ‘Raymond P’. The diplomat, who was arrested last June, is believed to have given the Anschlags nearly 500 classified documents originating from the German armed forces, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union. As intelNews reported in 2011, the alleged spies were also found to be in contact with their Russian handlers via a clandestine radio receiver, as well as through an Internet video service and a satellite telephone. German newsmagazine Der Spiegel wrote on Tuesday that there are rumors in Berlin that Germany has been engaged in negotiations with Moscow to exchange the couple with several Western agents currently in Russian prisons. The Kremlin is said to have rejected a German offer in 2012, though some speculate that a spy-swap deal between the two countries may now be close. Germany’s state-owned broadcaster Deutsche Welle said it contacted the Russian Embassy in Berlin and the headquarters of the SVR in Moscow about the case, but received no responses. Meanwhile, the trial of the Anschlags continues in Stuttgart behind closed doors.
intelNews.org 
They have a daughter, not a son. The daughter was not aware of her parents relation with Russian intelligence.
At the time of the wife’s arrest she was busy receiving a ‘radiogramma’ message formed of a number of tones. She would have been tuned to 5762kHz at 0440z [0640 local] to receive a 717 group message that took 10m16s to send. It was repeated at 0500 and 0520z [0700, 0720 local] but as she was arrested during the first sending there was only GSG-9 to listen to it [and me of course]. The schedule continued until June with null messages.
Always fascinating to read your comments Paul.
5762 KHZ is certainly a Russian ‘operating frequency’. I note the 20 minute delay between transmissions and that also seems to conform with Transmissions Format (historically)
But – I don’t understand what you mean by 717 group message – is 717 a message identifier ??
– or some sort of repeditave preamble ?
P.S: By “null messages” do you mean nuil – no message – which is repeated at five minute
intervals ??
@Lucas North: Corrected, thanks. [JF]
Peter, there were 777 groups [not 717, my error] sent on 18/10/2011 plus three admin groups not in the count. The initial message started 799 1 00217 00777 93067 followed by 777 five figure groups of which the last was 64746. The duration of the sending was 10m26s.
The ID was 799, derived from the 100kHz figure of the frequencies used: 5762, 6962 and 7962kHz. There was one message ‘1’. The message serial number being 217, hence 00217. 00777 refers to the 777 groups sent, actually 780 because the three admin groups are not counted and 93067 is the decode key.
There is a 120s tuning signal followed by the repeated preamble:
RYRYRYYRYRYRYRYRY [Lasts 120s]
799 799 799 1 799 799 799 1 799 799 799 1
00217 00777 93067 then ~776 groups 93067
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
The way the tones are arranged and you can see a spectral trace:
you can assume the entire transmission is designed for automatic or manual reception and computer decoding using a bespoke program.
A null message is one with no content. The next available message sent 20/10/2011 was an expected null message taking just 2m26s and read, in its entirety:
RYRYRYYRYRYRYRYRY [Lasts 120s]
799 799 799 000 799 799 799 000 799 799 799 000
05343 00001 00000 10140
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
ID, nil message [000], serial number, number of valid groups ‘1’ [00001] , no decode key [00000] as there is nothing to decode. 10140 is the last group, expected to reset the decode function in the program and the only valid group [to which the group 00001 refers].
Hope this helps you understand the build of the coded message Apologies for my group count error and the send duration error, mea culpa. I did it from memory!
thank you Paul
Thanks Paul as usual – your analysis is both educational and thought provokeing !!
The UTC timeing of the transmission(s) and the frequency / HZ settings (ascending ?)
are of particular interest.
What a coup for the German authoritys – useing GSG-9 to raid the residence (probably
scored them the DK before Heidrun Anschlag could shut down her computor !! )
I’d imagine that somewhere in Moscow – a youthful version of ‘Friday night Fraulein’
will by now be packing her bags in anticipation of an enforced vacation in Siberia.
I personally hope you will write more articles & comment within your specialist area for Intelnews.org
Thanks for your kind words Peter.
As a special treat [!!] here’s an actual earlier message sent to Heidrun Anschlag on 8034kHz 0440z 30/08/2011:
RRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYRRRRYYYYYYYYYY
YYYYYYRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
828 828 828 1 828 828 828 1 828 828 828 1
00901 00547 76892 93429 70874 00391 89530 35332 35282 40713 18909 37537 24524 31355
64866 66717 62061 80939 12947 23857 88003 71693 63420 34161 95390 36476 35880 65391
33584 08897 73309 14587 34918 00601 50813 62266 24406 17453 88024 52152 06514 04866
34392 67194 21792 21926 79259 67908 56050 44612 20502 43661 78028 22501 01079 16865
35133 12132 54446 54965 26357 72855 54215 51116
34249 50966 71883 08143 99400 23575 75639 05554 28922 17026 39134 99389 72136 37044
29685 09281 91100 59431 30716 04440 69516 84754 29825 71287 01510 14524 10284 12384
42879 56619 36577 37595 28753 96728 00640 17472 41668 15186 21654 01667 62123 98111
18882 23666 82144 50518 45910 55476 53968 90599 78027 32884 95176 49279 17902 38575
56686 85709 78958 74561 14894 15393 64845 19271
42422 40793 36179 56280 84885 27636 22447 87513 27706 88916 91429 96499 14242 84057
01202 41588 52641 55332 03517 40852 60181 04145 06985 66082 44253 19842 32614 46923
59050 71357 17961 69043 42099 32915 79859 67393 75590 47247 97236 62703 37617 65332
37888 43882 59390 99523 35991 15776 59596 88026 58071 25719 61410 33031 21874 40506
69117 58768 27689 53780 63060 68530 49106 67163
15395 99785 17828 59915 90243 44783 43472 66444 57835 53170 68174 55778 14667 92232
17523 37014 92380 01451 48234 36007 42639 85705 76911 46201 92791 62039 92718 15357
84614 42077 08383 24961 71516 02281 68377 41101 98007 31050 78142 51325 91891 94581
97949 45969 20379 36373 54587 66392 16085 02415 23619 64279 39994 30701 90210 93348
22577 11036 10188 79077 35117 51193 22177 71066
68486 87857 97602 57562 68862 42661 47770 86808 22622 24952 23375 59434 21263 04671
59408 56957 98082 86970 63450 31623 55769 96790 61321 71005 58286 54038 47957 16333
80008 40492 34068 19155 53085 84692 17905 57580 75474 68445 30898 53642 41249 01370
71981 28991 32981 74379 12710 23979 39410 56138 44264 02184 42370 63580 76635 10008
79563 48330 85312 78693 58240 90977 31090 97550
50443 46759 48077 72606 45511 63323 60001 08042 94139 38676 55025 85595 44261 00397
51762 27576 75551 65388 96360 79986 24901 40789 75031 10667 18224 64789 65788 85984
43764 06737 25677 97964 57828 81527 32150 76922 09745 69943 08731 35620 81772 71159
05353 31314 75155 20959 86376 06094 31266 23486 90538 99004 07381 40829 91381 92629
29320 92041 28431 28660 37400 12982 11594 62287
73744 43748 46534 10091 87891 03046 92821 48511 02494 98603 38846 10737 51014 33635
66383 50495 00034 03341 48789 62418 13070 44671 84835 32790 37464 84888 33960 45288
95472 26326 68946 23538 18526 19166 68909 17148 97621 39214 36853 20915 39387 93133
82078 31019 44033 84109 35200 01474 71790 92632 65061 78359 23486 26055 14193 53108
15315 85986 00466 10863 67273 92183 03913 30042
51496 96719 26423 35082 74070 87972 14260 18874 66088 29818 35325 64768 95404 80115
23801 21681 49881 27790 17285 28139 61027 46978 69513 65218 70607 45526 20297 75906
54434 59722 75556 37956 14121 94524 59377 57890 61721 04907 63646 80531 28038 59030
11158 90087 98073 18581 71571 45832 23840 68933 80882 61400 43049 81426 22397 11840
64740 88873 22419 35327 12317 41287 04913 69499
24242 68474 34681 67448 96643 00660 70588 85664 43277 81925 11433 16806 33594 01358
61235 44928 54105 39223 72107 12943 02637 61533 17923 39853 45271 70099 53835 34619
45632 62623 71475 08877 47928 02641 61634 90110 84577 41526 ++++++++++++++++++
++
You can see they’re very boring to look at as numerical values.
probably nothing new to this crew, but i had a chance to read The Codebreakers by David Kahn recently, which is like required reading for Codebreaking 101, and sheds light on such numerical values as those listed.
Thanks Paul
the trial is and was not “behind closed doors” – *they* just take a copy of your ID an search you thoroughly. dangerous objects (such as: purses) are not allowed.