Swedish senior diplomat arrested on suspicion of spying, say experiences

A senior Swedish diplomat has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, as the safety products and services examine a possible hyperlink to the unexpected resignation closing week of the federal government’s nationwide safety adviser, native media have reported.

Sweden’s safety provider (Säpo) mentioned on Tuesday it had arrested an individual, known in media experiences as a high-ranking diplomat who have been stationed at a number of embassies all over the world, on suspicion of spying.

According to the Swedish nationwide broadcaster SVT, Säpo is investigating whether or not there’s a connection between the diplomat and the resignation of Tobias Thyberg, a former ambassador to Ukraine. Thyberg was once compelled to hand over as nationwide safety adviser on Thursday simply hours after being appointed when intimate footage of him from the courting website online Grindr had been despatched to the federal government.

In a commentary, the prosecutor mentioned the unnamed diplomat was once suspected of wearing out espionage all the way through the similar duration that Thyberg was once compelled out. Thyberg isn’t suspected of any crime, SVT reported.

He was once, very in short, the substitute for Henrik Landerholm, the previous nationwide safety adviser who was once additionally compelled to renounce in January over mislaying labeled paperwork.

Swedish government have raised considerations lately about expanding threats from overseas powers similar to Russia, China and Iran and teams attractive in movements starting from violent assaults and hybrid conflict to company espionage.

In March, Säpo warned that overseas powers had been running in ways in which threatened safety, the usage of hybrid actions to destabilise Sweden and Europe.

The justice minister, Gunnar Strömmer, instructed SVT on Tuesday the federal government have been knowledgeable of Säpo’s operation and that the individual in custody was once suspected “on reasonable grounds” of espionage. Reasonable grounds is the decrease of 2 grades of suspicion in Sweden.

“The investigation has to be carried out and I don’t want to pre-empt it,” Strömmer mentioned in a commentary to SVT.

Anton Strand, the legal professional appointed to shield the individual in custody, declined to remark.

Säpo mentioned that one particular person have been arrested after an operation within the Stockholm house and that they had been not able to offer additional data owing to secrecy.

Karin Lutz, a spokesperson for Säpo, mentioned that whilst she understood the questions on doable hyperlinks between the 2 incidents, she may now not remark. “I’ve seen the news and I understand it raises a lot of questions but what we can say is there is one person who has been arrested,” she mentioned.

The prosecutor’s place of business didn’t straight away reply to a request for remark.

Reuters contributed to this record.