Kremlin spy on trial in Vienna: former Austrian intelligence officer worked for Russia
In Austria, a court has found former intelligence officer Egisto Ott guilty of passing classified information to Russian intelligence services over a period of several years. Despite the scale of the information leak and the length of his espionage activities, he was sentenced to four years in prison, according to the Financial Times.
A Vienna court has brought a high-profile case against former Austrian intelligence officer Egisto Ott to a close, finding him guilty of working for Russian intelligence services. According to the investigation, between 2015 and 2020, he systematically collected classified information and passed it, along with personal data, to Moscow via intermediaries.
In court, the 63-year-old defendant attempted to explain his actions as participation in an allegedly secret operation in cooperation with Western agencies; however, the jury did not accept these arguments, as the evidence clearly pointed to collaboration with the Russian side and causing harm to the Republic of Austria.
The investigation also established his ties to Jan Marsalek—a former top manager of the bankrupt German company Wirecard, who is currently in hiding in Moscow and is considered one of the key contacts of Russian intelligence services in Europe, through whom, according to the prosecution, part of the data transfer took place. Separately, the case file includes an episode involving access to the phones of high-ranking Austrian officials, when their devices fell into the water during a boat ride, after which Ott was able to copy the information and pass it on, taking advantage of the situation while the owners were unable to monitor their devices.
The prosecution stated that the motive for his actions was not ideology, but money, frustration with his job, and personal grievances, while the court concluded that the defendant’s activities were in fact aimed at supporting the Russian intelligence service to the detriment of the state.
Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger stated on the sidelines of a meeting with her EU counterparts that Vienna would no longer tolerate espionage activities on its territory, particularly by Russia.
