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CRIME

BND intelligence agency loses HQ blueprints

Secret building plans for the new headquarters of Germany's BND Intelligence agency have disappeared and a high-ranking employee is suspected of downloading porn to his work computer, according to media reports.

BND intelligence agency loses HQ blueprints
Photo: DPA

Focus magazine’s website reported that the plans for the new headquarters – which should be finished in the next few years – feature sensitive information such as location of alarm systems and anti-terrorism equipment. Theft by unknown elements is suspected.

A BND representative told Die Welt newspaper that the documents were likely leaked by a construction contractor.

“It’s obvious the papers were passed on from there,” he said.

The agency declined comment officially on the situation. But a spokesman for the Chancellery told Focus the government had ordered a complete investigation and has asked security officials to prepare an evaluation of security measures.

The BND has also been rocked by the porn allegations – allegedly a high-ranking employee downloaded internet porn onto his work computer.

According to Die Welt the worker fell under suspicion in March after a routine check by in-house technicians. They also found that he had made purchases on eBay. In general, private use of BND computers is strictly prohibited.

The discovery may be particularly embarrassing because the man is a key department head and a confidante of the intelligence agency’s president, Ernst Uhrlau, Die Welt.

The Local/mdm

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BUSINESS

Elon Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory

Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla's factory near Berlin to lend his workers "support" after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.

Elon Musk visits Tesla's sabotage-hit German factory

The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing “eco-terrorists” of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.

With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”

The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).

READ ALSO: Far-left group claims ‘sabotage’ on Tesla’s German factory

Musk had said then that the attack was “extremely dumb”, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.

A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.

Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.

Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.

Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.

But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.

After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

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