suspicion

August Hanning’s former chief of staff was also arrested on suspicion of ‘aiding and abetting attempted treason’.

Germany’s former foreign spy chief has been arrested on suspicion of espionage and treason, prosecutors have said.

August Hanning, 80, is under investigation for attempted treason and acting as an agent for a foreign intelligence service, the Office of the Federal Public Prosecutor General confirmed on Tuesday.

Hanning was president of Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service between 1998 and 2005.

He was arrested in Bad Toelz-Wolfratshausen in southern Germany. His former chief of staff, partially identified as Manfred D, was arrested in Steinfurt in western Germany on suspicion of “aiding and abetting attempted treason and treasonous espionage”.

The prosecutor’s office said, “On one occasion, Hanning used classified intelligence provided by Manfred D to draft an analysis for an officer of a foreign intelligence service.”

Prosecutors said Manfred D also served as the chief of staff for Hanning’s successors between 2012 and 2026, and used his role to gain access to confidential information which he then passed on to Hanning “in exchange for remuneration”. Hanning then used the information in his private consulting work, prosecutors added.

“The current findings suggest that, over the years, Manfred D provided Hanning with approximately 2,000 documents, many of which contained classified information to be used exclusively by the federal intelligence service for internal purposes, particularly for executive intelligence briefings,” the statement said.

The statement did not reveal who the two men were suspected of spying for or which country the foreign agent worked for, adding that “it has yet to be determined if the material reached the intended recipient”.

German MP Marc Henrichmann told the AFP news agency that Germany “will not tolerate the betrayal of secrets”.

Henrichmann, who chairs the German parliament’s intelligence oversight committee, said, “Whoever allies themselves with the enemies of our liberal democracy will be found out.”

The premises of Manfred D and Hanning were being searched in several locations, including in the capital, Berlin.

The case against the woman who authorities allege fired multiple bullets at pop singer Rihanna’s Beverly Hills mansion can move forward, a judge ruled Tuesday.

Florida woman Ivanna Lisette Ortiz, 36, was deemed mentally competent by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Maria Cavalluzzi, meaning the criminal case can proceed after a competency evaluation delayed it for more than four months.

Case documents with Ortiz’s psychiatric evaluations were marked as confidential and sealed.

Officials allege that she put “numerous lives at risk” on March 8 when she drove a white Tesla to Rihanna’s neighborhood and fired about 20 rounds from an assault-style rifle. Rihanna, her partner A$AP Rocky and their three young children were home at the time.

Police discovered bullet holes or impacts on the exterior of the gate of Rihanna’s residence, a fence, the front windshield of an Airstream trailer, a patio area and on the exterior wall of a nursery room, according to a police document reviewed by City News Service.

At the time of the shooting, Rihanna and A$AP Rocky were inside the trailer, and their kids were inside the nursery room, according to reporting by the Associated Press.

Ortiz is facing 14 felony counts, including one count of attempted murder, 10 counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and three counts of shooting at an inhabited dwelling, vehicle or other target, court records show.

Ortiz had several prior arrests in her home state, The Times has reported. She was involved in a bankruptcy case in 2013, arrested on suspicion of careless driving in 2021, and arrested in 2023 on suspicion of domestic violence and battery.

Though she had no known affiliation with Rihanna, Ortiz often posted on social media about celebrities. In February, she shared a meme alleging Rihanna had AIDS and tagged Rihanna in a post on Facebook telling her to “say something to me directly instead of sneaking around.”

Another hearing is set for Wednesday morning at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, court records show.

City News Service contributed to this report.

Two-time NBA champion J.R. Smith has been arrested in Texas on family violence charges.

The former Laker is being held on suspicion of family violence assault causing bodily injury, with no bond currently set, according to the Hunt County jail’s booking records. The charge is usually a misdemeanor for first-time offenders.

According to a news release from Royse City police chief Kirk Aldridge, officers stopped Smith, whose full name is Earl Joseph Smith III, on Interstate 30 on Monday afternoon after receiving an automatic license plate alert about an outstanding warrant for his arrest issued by the Southlake Police Department..

The officers stopped the vehicle, identified Smith and took him into custody. He was transported to the Hunt County dentention center and booked on the Southlake warrant. Smith’s car was released to his brother, who was with him at the time.

Southlake police said in a statement that the investigation is ongoing and no additional information will be released at this time.

Smith played for five teams during his 16-year NBA career. He was named the league’s sixth man of the year in 2013 as a member of the New York Knicks and was a member of the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers that won the 2016 NBA championship.

After signing with the Lakers while the league was shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic in July 2020, Smith played sparingly after the season resumed in a bubble environment in Orlando, eventually winning another NBA championship with James as his teammate. His last NBA appearance was in Game 3 of the 2020 finals, a 115-104 Lakers loss to the Miami Heat.

In 2009, Smith was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 60 days suspended, and 500 hours of community service for reckless driving after he caused a 2007 auto accident in Millstone, N.J., that resulted in the death of a friend who was a passenger in the vehicle.