German Engineer Gets 8 1/2 Years for Spying for Soviets
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MUNICH, West Germany — A West German engineer, described as the longest-serving KGB spy in West Germany, Monday was sentenced to 8 1/2 years in prison for passing high-technology secrets to the Soviet Union.
Manfred Rotsch, 62, a former research chief at West Germany’s biggest aerospace company, Messerschmitt-Boelkow-Blohm (MBB), was found guilty in the Munich High Court of spying for Moscow for the past 30 years.
Presiding Judge Werner Biebel said that secrets passed by Rotsch to the Soviet Union included details of the European Tornado combat aircraft and research satellite projects.
The prosecution had demanded a 10-year sentence for Rotsch, whom it described as “the KGB’s longest-serving spy in West Germany.”
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