Ex-director of Danish spy agency charged with treason in ‘unprecedented’ case
January 12, 2022 Leave a comment
IN A CASE THAT observers have described as “unprecedented”, the recently dismissed director of Denmark’s external intelligence agency has been charged with committing acts of treason against the state. Lars Findsen directed the Danish Defense Intelligence Service (FE, or DDIS in English) from 2015 until his sudden dismissal in 2020. Prior to that, he directed the DDIS’ domestic counterpart, namely the Danish Security and Intelligence Service, or DSIS. As intelNews reported at the time, Findsen was dismissed from his DDIS post in August of 2020. His dismissal was announced with a brief statement by the Danish Ministry of Defense, which said simply that Findsen had been “relieved of duty for the time being”, pending an investigation.
Now it has been revealed that Findsen was among four current and former members of the DDIS and the DSIS, who were arrested last month. The Danish government made use of an obscure secrecy clause to bar the nation’s media from reporting the arrests. As a result, Findsen’s whereabouts were not known until Monday, when a court lifted the reporting ban after an early-morning closed-door hearing. Shortly afterwards, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, Denmark’s public broadcaster, reported that Findsen was arrested on the morning of December 8, 2021, at the Copenhagen Airport.
According to the report, Findsen has been charged with acts of treason related to disclosing state secrets to Danish journalists. Back in 2020, intelNews reported that Findsen’s dismissal was likely related to a damning assessment that had been issued by the Danish Oversight Board, known as TET, which is responsible for overseeing the work of Denmark’s spy agencies. The assessment had blasted the DDIS for effectively lying about its intelligence-collection practices while in full knowledge that they were in violation of Danish privacy law. Later that year, however, Danish intelligence agencies were severely criticized, after reports surfaced that they had secretly helped the United States spy on Western countries, including France, Sweden, Germany and Holland.
The above revelation have prompted strong criticism of the Danish spy services all over Europe. But it is not known whether Findsen’s arrest is connected with any of them. Reports said last night that the other three current and former intelligence personnel who were arrested alongside Findsen had been released on bail. Findsen, however, remains in detention, and faces charges that carry a 12-year prison sentence. Speaking to reporters following his court arraignment, Findsen said he looked forward to the opportunity to dispute the charges against him, which he described as “absolutely insane”.
► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 12 January 2022 | Permalink
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Alleged Islamic State informant sues Danish spy services over prison sentence
August 28, 2023 by Joseph Fitsanakis 1 Comment
Ahmed Samsam grew up in Copenhagen with his six siblings. He was involved in numerous criminal activities, including robbery and drugs possession. In September 2012, he traveled to from Denmark to Turkey. From there he entered Syria, intending to join the civil war on the side of the anti-government rebels. Upon returning to Denmark in December of that year, Samsam was imprisoned for a prior criminal offense. It was during his time in prison that members of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET) allegedly approached him, asking him to work as an undercover informant abroad. Samsam claims that he undertook several trips to Syria as an informant between 2013 and 2015. While he was there, he claims that he spied on the Islamic State on behalf of the PET and the Danish Defense Intelligence Service (FE), which also recruited him as a spy.
Samsam eventually returned to Denmark, but in 2017 fled to Spain, allegedly to escape harassment by a rival criminal gang in Copenhagen. In June of that year, he was arrested by Spanish police near the coastal city of Malaga in southern Spain. Samsam was charged with terrorism, after police discovered several photos of himself posing with Islamic State symbols and flags on his mobile telephone. He was eventually convicted to eight years in prison, which were later reduced to six. Since 2020, Samsam has been serving his prison sentence in Denmark.
But, in a lawsuit he brought against the Danish state, Samsam claims he had engaged with Islamic State fighters in Syria at the behest of the PET and the FE, and argues that he should not be jailed for terrorism offenses. However, the Danish intelligence agencies have rejected calls to confirm or deny that Samsam had been recruited by them as an informant. Attorney Peter Biering, who represents the defendants in the case, told the court last week that forcing the intelligence agencies to identify their informants would “harm [the agencies’] ability to […] protect [their sources] and prevent terrorism”. Samsam’s attorney, Erbil Kaya, argues that the Danish state is morally obligated to admit to his client’s role as an undercover informant, even if this is formally prevented by the law of the land.
The trial is expected to conclude on September 8. Several witnesses, including government officials and investigative reporters, have been scheduled to testify in court, almost certainly behind closed doors.
► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 28 August 2023 | Permalink
Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Ahmed Samsam, Denmark, FE (Denmark), informants, Islamic State, lawsuits, News, PET (Denmark), Spain