Germany: Swiss tax spy gets suspended prison term

A Swiss man was handed a suspended prison term of nearly two years and a fine on Thursday for spying on a German tax authority, in a case that has pitted Swiss bank secrecy against Germany’s clampdown on tax evasion.

The man had confessed to the Frankfurt state court that he accepted 28,000 euros ($33,000) from Switzerland’s NDB spy agency to obtain information on tax officials in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

The 54-year-old was identified only as Daniel M. in line with Germany privacy rules. The court took into account his confession in handing him the suspended sentence.

“I am certain now that there never was [a mole],” he said in October. I am ashamed, this business is very embarrassing.”
He also said that his motivations for taking on the job were “patriotism, a desire for adventure, a pursuit of profit, and outrage”, a narrative that was strongly pushed by his lawyers during the trial.

The court said that M. worked for Zurich police and for a Swiss bank, then founded his own company in 2011. It said he got into contact with the intelligence agency via former police colleagues. His spying took place between July 2011 and February 2015.

The finance minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, said the Swiss agency’s behavior was unacceptable and must not be repeated.

The case of Daniel M. has triggered outrage in Germany but the Swiss authorities have defended their efforts to combat the theft of business secrets.