[ad_1]
The district court will release the man who was arrested in August on charges of sharing state secrets. The prosecution appeals the decision. The Norwegian is now also charged with serious corruption.
The man worked at DNV GL. Here is the head office of the company located in Høvik in the municipality of Bærum.
DNV GL
Published:,
The court believes that there is not a high probability that evidence will be lost if the man is released. It appears on the district court’s incarceration order.
The prosecution appealed the release ruling. The accused is prohibited from receiving letters and visits while the Appeal Court is processing the appeal.
Since the last jail meeting, the charge has been expanded to also include gross corruption.
– I don’t feel like there’s any drama in it. This is based on the same evidence he was already charged with, says the man’s defender, Marianne Darre-Næss.
He does not wish to comment further on the case, except that he considers the sentence to be “correct and complete.”
The PST is silent on the ruling and what it thinks about the district court wanting to release the man accused of espionage.
– We note that the district court will release him, but we have appealed the decision, says senior adviser and press contact Martin Bernsen on PST.
Bernsen will say nothing about the reason the charge has been extended to gross corruption.
also read
Norwegian spy suspect: says he got money for information
Detained in restaurant
The man was arrested by PST at a restaurant in Oslo in August and charged with revealing state secrets.
So he must have been in a meeting with what the PST believes to be a Russian intelligence officer. According to PST, they must have had several meetings with each other. The indictment states that the court believes the man likely understood who he met.
The Norwegian worked at DNV GL (formerly Det Norske Veritas) and through the job had access to classified material.
50 customers may be affected
In August, he was in preventive detention for four weeks. The defendant does not admit criminal guilt, but on questioning he has admitted that he has received money to provide information.
The defendants worked primarily with materials technology and 3D printing in the oil and gas field, according to DNV GL. The company has previously confirmed that 50 of its clients may be affected by the case.
These include companies such as Kongsberg Gruppen and Equinor.
DNV GL operates with quality assurance and risk management at an international level. The head office is located in Høvik in Bærum.
After the man’s arrest, the Foreign Ministry decided to deport the Russian diplomat with whom he was said to have been sitting when he was arrested.
– It is because he has taken actions that are not compatible with his role and status as a diplomat, said communications manager Trude Måseide at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the time.
