Former Danish Defense Minister Klaus Hjort Frederiksen said on Friday he was accused of violating a section of the penal code that includes treason for leaking state secrets, according to Reuters.
Fredericksen, who served as defense minister from 2016 to 2019, was charged under the infrequently used Article 109 of the code, which carries a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison, although it is unclear exactly what he was charged with.
Article 109 covers any “person who discloses or transmits any information concerning secret negotiations, discussions or decisions of a State or of its rights in relation to foreign States”.
A statement issued by Fredericksen on Friday did not specify what the charges against him were or whether it was during his tenure as minister.
“I have spoken as a member of parliament on a political issue and I have nothing else to add at the moment. But I could never dream that I could do something that could harm Denmark or Denmark’s interests,” he said. Fredericksen in a statement.
It was not clear what comments he made in his statement, and the prosecutor’s office and the defense ministry declined to comment.
The news comes after the head of Denmark’s intelligence unit was arrested last month, charged under the same article of the law with suspicious involvement in a case of leaking “top secret” information. Lars Finzen denied the offense, describing the charge as “completely insane”.
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Source From: Capital
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