August Hanning and the Block case: Undercover investigator spied on ex-BND chief

Hamburg – He was the top lord of Germany’s agents and spies for seven years. It has now emerged that ex-BND chief August Hanning (80) was himself spied on – by an undercover investigator from the Hamburg LKA. This emerges from documents available to BILD, in which BILD also appears.

The undercover investigator (internal name “VE01”) worked for the Hamburg company “System 360 Grad GmbH” for 141 days, from May 28th to October 15th, 2025. August Hanning sits on the supervisory board of their Swiss parent company. That a former president of the Federal Intelligence Service The aim of a covert operation by a state criminal police office is also exceptional in terms of security policy.

The undercover agent was supposed to find out

The undercover investigator therefore received an employment contract Salary and direct access to sensitive information. His mission: Find out whether Hanning and the company – namely Thorsten Mehles, ex-LKA official and then managing director – tried to do one Kidnapping of steakhouse heiress Christina Block’s children (53) could have been involved in 2022. In this context, the public prosecutor’s office is conducting proceedings against Hanning and Mehles on suspicion of abducting minors. They are also said to be involved in the abduction of the block children Klara (15) and Theo (12) in the New Year’s Eve 2023/2024 be entangled. Because she is said to have ordered this kidnapping, Christina Block currently has to answer before the Hamburg district court.

Brisanter Fund

Another task of the undercover investigator: to investigate possible connections between Hanning, the company and a “dissemination of child pornography.” The background is the custody dispute between Christina Block and her ex-husband Stephan Hensel (52). In September 2023, Hensel discovered a diving bag with a hard drive in his garage containing photos of sexualized women Violence were stored against children. He had the find immediately police reported.

Will more information come to light?

The documents do not reveal what the undercover investigator found out about this in the six months he spent working in the Hamburg company. But it could then come to light if the public prosecutor’s office files charges against Hanning and Mehles. In any proceedings that may take place before the regional court Hamburg The findings are likely to be used because the undercover agent’s work was approved by the Hamburg District Court’s decision of May 28, 2025 (160 Gs 598/25).

This is known about the use of the LKA spy

What do we know about the use of the LKA spy? According to the documents, he was supposed to secure data from the IT systems of “System 360 Grad”, to which he received access data after being hired. He took part in internal “Get Together” rounds, strategy discussions and telephone conferences. He documented that the management was intensively involved with the ongoing block process, appointing a process observer District Court sent and how defense strategies were discussed.

BILD also appears in the documents. Accordingly, ex-LKA man Mehles told the undercover investigator that Hanning had a very close relationship with the editor-in-chief of the BILD newspaper. The editor-in-chief of the BILD Group, Robert Schneider (49), states: “What is claimed here is untrue. I have no contact with Mr. Hanning.”

Hanning and Mehles remain silent

In total, the undercover investigator “VE01” noted 76 notes, of which, according to the documents, more than 20 are considered relevant to the ongoing block procedure. According to the documents, the LKA describes the operation as a “success”.

Both August Hanning and Thorsten Mehles have so far left BILD’s inquiries about the matter unanswered.