Egisto Ott case

Viennese constitutional protector appears in files

The Vienna State Office for State Protection and Counter-Extremism is subordinate to the Vienna State Police Directorate.(Bild: LPFD Wien)

Following the arrest of former constitutional protection officer Egisto Ott on suspicion of espionage, another federal employee has now become the focus of investigations. The civil servant from the Vienna State Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counterterrorism (LVT) was already suspended in 2022.

The constitutional protection officer who worked at the LVT, which has since been renamed the State Office for State Protection and Counter-Extremism (LSE), is said to have been part of Egisto Ott's spy network. At least his name appears in the investigations.

Suspended for nine months, then retired
He was already suspended for nine months in September 2022, as confirmed by the Vienna Provincial Police Directorate. However, the former constitutional protection officer has since retired.

Preliminary proceedings against him were discontinued in May 2023. The officer has been retired since November 2023, reports the "Kurier". 

Disciplinary proceedings are still ongoing
His exact role in the Ott case is currently unknown. The investigating authorities did not wish to comment further. Only this much: "The disciplinary proceedings are still pending."

Chats incriminate Ott heavily
The arrest of Egisto Ott was the result of chat histories seized by British law enforcement authorities between the fugitive ex-Wirecard board member Jan Marsalek, who is believed to have gone into hiding with the help of Moscow, and a Russian spy who has since been arrested in the UK.

These chats incriminate Ott and his former superior, the then head of the espionage department at the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counterterrorism (BVT), Martin Weiss, who has since fled to Dubai. The chats show that Ott "systematically" provided the Russian secret service with secret, strictly confidential facts and findings from the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution as well as personal data from police databases, as the arrest warrant states.

National Security Council meets on the case
On Tuesday evening, the National Security Council will also discuss the case. The body was convened by the formally responsible Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) on the initiative of the Greens. The contents discussed in the Security Council are subject to confidentiality.