Investigation Launched Against Former BND Chief Hanning in Child Abduction Case

The Hamburg public prosecutor's office has initiated an investigation against August Hanning, the former president of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), in connection with the attempted abduction of two children belonging to entrepreneur Christina Block during the New Year's Eve of 2023/24. The inquiry also encompasses an incident that occurred in 2022, suggesting that the former intelligence chief may have played a crucial role in a conspiracy to facilitate the children's removal.

According to the authorities, Hanning, alongside a retired official from the Hamburg State Criminal Police Office, is under suspicion of accepting a contract from Christina Block to orchestrate the abduction of her children. It has been reported that a sum exceeding EUR100,000 was paid for this alleged operation. Hanning's legal representative has vehemently denied the allegations.

Details surrounding the attempted abduction dating back to November 9, 2022, reveal plans to intercept the children while they were being escorted to school in Southern Denmark. The strategy reportedly involved distracting their guardian to allow Christina Block to take the children away. However, the children's father, Stephan Hensel, noticed suspicious individuals near his residence and alerted the Danish authorities, thus thwarting the plan.

Additional allegations against Hanning and the other implicated retired officer suggest they may have collaborated with Christina Block and an Israeli security firm to discredit Hensel and his family law attorney through false accusations of pedophilia. Furthermore, the extent of Hanning's involvement in the New Year's Eve abduction is currently under investigation.

On the preceding Tuesday, the Hamburg public prosecutor's office executed searches at 13 locations in Germany and Switzerland. The locations included eight addresses associated with the suspects and five others linked to individuals who are not under suspicion, spanning across Hamburg, Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Brandenburg.

Importantly, Hanning and the other accused officer are not among the seven individuals currently facing charges in the ongoing trial at the Hamburg Regional Court concerning the child abduction case. Christina Block, aged 52, has been accused of commissioning the operation to reclaim her children, a claim she continues to deny.