{"id":30306,"date":"2026-01-25T05:26:36","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T10:26:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/?p=30306"},"modified":"2026-01-25T05:26:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T10:26:36","slug":"ex-intelligence-officer-accused-of-betraying-austria-in-russia-spying-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2026\/01\/25\/ex-intelligence-officer-accused-of-betraying-austria-in-russia-spying-trial\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-intelligence officer accused of betraying Austria in Russia spying trial"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Former intelligence official Egisto Ott has gone on trial in Vienna, accused of spying for Russia in what is being dubbed Austria’s biggest spy trial in years.<\/b><\/p>\n

Egisto Ott, who told the court on Thursday that he was not guilty, is charged with having handed over information to Russian intelligence officers and to Jan Marsalek, the fugitive executive of collapsed German payments firm Wirecard.<\/p>\n

The prosecutor told the court that Ott, 63, was “not romantic about Russia” but had acted out of financial motives and frustration with his career. “Simply put, this was betraying the country.” he said.<\/p>\n

Ott’s lawyer, Anna Mair, rejected the allegations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“Don’t you think that if he had really been spying for Russia, he would have covered his tracks?” she asked.<\/p>\n

The prosecutor argued that people like Ott were “very susceptible” to working for the Russians, saying: “They are frustrated in their careers and urgently need money.”<\/p>\n

Ott had done “excellent” work for the Russian secret service”, the prosecution added.<\/p>\n

The former intelligence official had been broke since 2013 at the latest, the court heard: “The Russian secret service pays very well.”<\/p>\n

He is alleged to have “abused his authority” as an Austrian intelligence official by collecting large amounts of personal data, such as locations, vehicle registration numbers, or travel movements.<\/p>\n

Prosecutors say he did this between 2015 and 2020 without authorisation, often using national and international police databases.<\/p>\n

They also accuse him of supporting “a secret intelligence service of the Russian Federation to the detriment of the Republic of Austria” by collecting secret facts and a large amount of personal data from police databases between 2017 and 2021.<\/p>\n

As well as abuse of authority, Egisto Ott is charged with corruption and espionage against Austria and if found guilty faces up to five years in prison.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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