On Monday, two men were arrested in Denmark on suspicion of espionage.
They were given their constitutional hearing on Tuesday in the District Court in Aalborg, where the Danish media also learned about the arrests.
They are charged with taking photos of the defence company MyDefence in North Jutland and sending these images to a third party.
There’s a lot that we still do not know. This article will take you through what we know.
What we know about the suspects
The two men who were arrested are an 18-year-old and a 21-year-old, and both hold Ukrainian citizenship.
They seemingly do not speak Danish, as they required an interpreter at their constitutional hearing. According to TV 2, the language spoken was Russian.
They are charged under section 108(1) of the penal code, which is known as the milder of the espionage charges.
The men were arrested on Monday and brought to the constitutional hearing on Tuesday. There, their arrest was extended by three more periods of 24 hours.
A third person who was involved is still believed to be at large.
There is currently an anonymity order in place on the two suspects. Therefore, the Danish media are not reporting their names. Both men deny the charges.
What we know about the incident
The alleged crime was committed on Monday, the same day as the arrests.
The two men stand charged with taking photographs of MyDefence and sharing them with a third party on Telegram.
Prosecutors suspect that a Russian intelligence service is involved in this case.
MyDefence is a defence company which produces, amongst other products, anti-drone systems, and it has sold equipment to the Ukrainian military.
The company is located in Nørresundby in North Jutland.
No comment from MyDefence
Both MyDefence and the Danish Security and Intelligence Service have told DR that they do not wish to comment on the case.
However, Minister for Justice Nicolai Wammen of the Social Democrats (Socialdemokratiet) warned TV 2 of an increasing threat landscape facing Denmark.
He went on to say, “Therefore, it is very, very important that no Danes become useful idiots, or in any other way contribute to supporting the work of Russian intelligence services here in the country.”
