A Norwegian citizen in his 20s was arrested at home in his own garage on Wednesday. He is charged with attempted gross intelligence activities against state secrets. If you are convicted under this section, you risk imprisonment for up to 10 years. The man in his 20s admits to having collected and shared information with the Russian and Iranian authorities. This is revealed in a detention order from the Oslo district court. The court believes that it is likely that the man has committed the offenses for which he is charged. In the ruling, it is referred to, among other things, that the police have found an assignment dialogue with a lead officer. A guidance officer is a person who instructs and directs a spy. The accused was arrested in the garage of this garage where he lives. Photo: Knut Are Tornås / news The job at the US embassy – It is too early to say what has been shared and what has been tried to be shared, says Blom of the Police Security Service (PST) at a press conference on Thursday evening. PST confirms that the man was employed as a security guard at the American embassy. Police prosecutor Thomas Blom in PST answered questions from news after the press conference about the Norwegian accused of spying. PST has been investigating the case since Monday this week. Currently, no other persons are suspected in the case. – We are at the very beginning of a fairly extensive investigation, says Blom. According to him, PST has good cooperation with the American authorities. PST has made large digital seizures in the case. On Thursday, the man in his 20s was detained for four weeks with a letter and restraining order. He must also be isolated from other inmates for the first week. May have shared secret information The man in his 20s is also charged with other illegal intelligence that could damage the interests of other states. This has a penalty of three years. On Thursday afternoon, news was informed that the man worked as a security guard at the US embassy. Then PST did not want to comment on this. – Information about who visits the American Embassy may, depending on the circumstances, constitute “secret” information, writes the district court in its ruling. It could also threaten US security interests, according to the court. – Has he worked for the American embassy? – He has worked for a foreign country, said the man’s defender John Christian Elden to news on Thursday afternoon. John Christian Elden defends the Norwegian accused of spying. Photo: Annika Byrde / NTB Runs a security company in Oslo Together with a man with both Norwegian and Eastern European citizenship, the accused runs a security company. There are no registered employees in the company. news’s investigations show that the company has been approved by the police to provide security, escort services and control services in Oslo. Oslo Police District has not yet responded to news’s inquiry about the case. Facsimile: news On a now-deleted website for the company, which news has found with the help of the online digital archive Wayback Machine, it states that the company offers, among other things, security at embassies. The man’s business partner is a Norwegian citizen of Eastern European origin. On his social media accounts, he has several times published photos that give the impression that he has worked with security at the American embassy in Oslo. The man’s company has had neither income nor expenses since its inception, their accounts show. In the Brønnøysund registers, the company is registered at the man’s home address. In the police register, it is listed on a post box in central Oslo. The man himself is listed with an income of around NOK 200,000 in 2022, and in the years before that. He has not previously been convicted in Norway. news has been in contact with the American embassy, which has not yet responded to our inquiries. Denies criminal guilt Defense attorney Elden states that his client does not admit criminal guilt, but agrees to imprisonment for two weeks. – He is charged with having obtained information that could harm the security situation of third countries, and the question is whether the information he is sitting on is of such a nature. – So he has not acknowledged that he is a spy? – No. He has consented to custody based on the information picture that is now available, and then we must come back to whether this is affected by the provisions of the Criminal Code. Published 21.11.2024, at 13.00 Updated 21.11.2024, at 21.44
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Norwegian accused of espionage allegedly worked as a guard at the American embassy – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
