German Spy Agency HQ Blueprints Stolen: Report
German government calls alleged theft a "serious issue," launches investigation.
July 11, 2011 — -- The German government has launched an investigation into the alleged theft of classified blueprints of the German spy agency's new state-of-the-art headquarters, a government spokesperson said today.
The announcement came after a German magazine, Focus, published a German-language report which claimed the blueprints -- comprised of building plans, alarm systems and locking systems among other features -- had disappeared perhaps as long as a year ago but the disappearance had gone unnoticed until recently.
"It has not yet been possible to verify the authenticity of the reports, but an investigation was launched into the matter on Friday," government spokesperson Steffen Seibert said at a press conference Monday, according to media reports. "It's a serious issue and the government is interested in clearing up this case as quickly as possible."
The new headquarters for the German foreign intelligence service, the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), is reportedly set to be one of the most technologically sophisticated buildings in the world when it is finished in Berlin in 2014. The BND declined to comment on the plans' disappearance, but one representative told Germany's Die Welt newspaper the documents were likely leaked by a construction contractor.
Representatives for the German government did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this report.
