A former aide to German far-right member of the European Parliament and Bundestag Maximilian Krach has been sentenced to four years and nine months in prison. He was found guilty of spying for China.
Euroactive writes about this.
A court in Dresden found German citizen Jian G. (presumably referring to Jian Guo, who was arrested by German prosecutors on April 23, 2024 ) guilty of working for Chinese intelligence while working for Krach, a member of the far-right Alternative for Germany party. Guoʼs accomplice, Chinese citizen Yaki X., was given a suspended sentence of one year and nine months.
Prosecutors had sought a seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence for Guo, who worked for Krach from 2019 to 2024, when he was an MEP. Prosecutors allege he worked for Chinese intelligence since 2002 and used his position in the MEP’s office to gather intelligence on European affairs and the Alternative for Germany party.
Getty Images / «Babel'»
Go is also accused of being the handler of Yaki X. At the start of the trial, Yaki, who worked for a logistics firm at Leipzig Airport, admitted to passing on information about flight schedules and cargo movements to Go.
Prosecutors say she shared information about military aircraft, troops and drones, including those heading to Israel.
Krach, now a member of the Bundestag, told a court this month that he was unaware of the charges against Guo and hired him because of his language skills and experience running an import-export firm.
Krach is under separate investigation for suspected money laundering and taking bribes from Chinese sources while serving as a member of the European Parliament.
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