Heinz Felfe
Encyclopedia
Heinz Paul Johann Felfe was a German national who was a former SS
Obersturmführer
(First Lieutenant), who worked for the Bundesnachrichtendienst
(The Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service, BND) is the foreign intelligence agency of the modern German government, under the control of the Chancellor's Office), after the Second World War and who became a spy
for the Soviet Union
.
Felfe joined the Sicherheitsdienst
(The Sicherheitsdienst (SD, Security Service) was primarily the intelligence service of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany), of the SS in 1943, during which he was stationed in Switzerland and the Netherlands. He was captured by the British Army in 1945. After the war he provided intelligence to the British, but they released him suspecting he was a Soviet mole
. In 1951 he joined the Gehlen Organization, quickly rising through the ranks. This was for his high rate of uncovering Soviet spies, while he was a Soviet double-spy himself. Consequently, he became head of department of Soviet counterespionage of German BND.
Felfe was arrested on spying charges on November 6, 1961, and put on trial in 1963. He was given a 14-year sentence, but was released in 1969 in exchange for three West German students who were convicted in the Soviet Union for spying: Walter Naumann, Peter Sonntag and Volker Schaffhausen.
According to Heribert Hellenbroich (head of BND) on public TV, Felfe displayed a healthy measure of chutzpah
while being an instructor to nascent spies of BND: During his explanation of secret communication via shortwave radio from KGB / Moscow to their European spies, he used actual radio traffic (encrypted number sequences in spoken German language voice) that in fact contained orders that Felfe himself was to carry out on behalf of the Soviets.
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
(First Lieutenant), who worked for the Bundesnachrichtendienst
Bundesnachrichtendienst
The Bundesnachrichtendienst [ˌbʊndəsˈnaːχʁɪçtnˌdiːnst] is the foreign intelligence agency of Germany, directly subordinated to the Chancellor's Office. Its headquarters are in Pullach near Munich, and Berlin . The BND has 300 locations in Germany and foreign countries...
(The Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service, BND) is the foreign intelligence agency of the modern German government, under the control of the Chancellor's Office), after the Second World War and who became a spy
SPY
SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...
for the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Felfe joined the Sicherheitsdienst
Sicherheitsdienst
Sicherheitsdienst , full title Sicherheitsdienst des Reichsführers-SS, or SD, was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. The organization was the first Nazi Party intelligence organization to be established and was often considered a "sister organization" with the...
(The Sicherheitsdienst (SD, Security Service) was primarily the intelligence service of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany), of the SS in 1943, during which he was stationed in Switzerland and the Netherlands. He was captured by the British Army in 1945. After the war he provided intelligence to the British, but they released him suspecting he was a Soviet mole
Mole (espionage)
A mole is a spy who works for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty ostensibly lies with his own nation's government. In some usage, a mole differs from a defector in that a mole is a spy before gaining access to classified information, while a defector becomes a spy only after gaining access...
. In 1951 he joined the Gehlen Organization, quickly rising through the ranks. This was for his high rate of uncovering Soviet spies, while he was a Soviet double-spy himself. Consequently, he became head of department of Soviet counterespionage of German BND.
Felfe was arrested on spying charges on November 6, 1961, and put on trial in 1963. He was given a 14-year sentence, but was released in 1969 in exchange for three West German students who were convicted in the Soviet Union for spying: Walter Naumann, Peter Sonntag and Volker Schaffhausen.
According to Heribert Hellenbroich (head of BND) on public TV, Felfe displayed a healthy measure of chutzpah
Chutzpah
Chutzpah is the quality of audacity, for good or for bad, but it is generally used negatively. The Yiddish word derives from the Hebrew word , meaning "insolence", "audacity". The modern English usage of the word has taken on a broader meaning, having been popularized through vernacular use in...
while being an instructor to nascent spies of BND: During his explanation of secret communication via shortwave radio from KGB / Moscow to their European spies, he used actual radio traffic (encrypted number sequences in spoken German language voice) that in fact contained orders that Felfe himself was to carry out on behalf of the Soviets.