Austrian Diplomat Suspected Of Leaking Novichok Formula - Reports

VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2021) Former Secretary General of the Austrian Foreign Ministry and Ambassador to Indonesia Johannes Peterlik was allegedly removed from the diplomatic service over suspicions of his involvement in the leak of classified documents containing Novichok formula, Austria's Kurier newspaper reported on Friday.

The diplomat is suspected of abuse of power and disclosure of official secrets, the daily said. The ongoing investigation focuses on the leak from an Austrian ministry of a secret document containing the formula of the Novichok chemical agent, which, according to Kurier, could have fallen into the hands of Jan Marsalek, an alleged white-collar criminal and former manager of the German payment processing firm Wirecard.

The prosecutor's office in Vienna is currently conducting a closed investigation, the details of which have not been released. The Austrian Foreign Ministry also does not comment on the details of the case.

The Austrian foreign, defense and economy ministries filed a statement with the police in July 2021 over an alleged leak of classified documents about the Novichok substance, the Kurier noted.

Wirecard, a blue-chip company listed in Germany's DAX index, has been caught up in an accounting scandal after $2.1 billion was found to be missing from its balance sheet. The company filed for insolvency in June. Former CEO Markus Braun resigned and was arrested on charges of inflating the company's value through fake transactions. The scandal cast a shadow on German financial regulator BaFin, accused of ignoring telltale signs of false accounting practices that have been going on for several years.

The German authorities are currently investigating the activities of former Wirecard managers. Two of them, besides Braun, have already been arrested. Marsalek, one of the key ex-employees, is hiding from the investigation, and, as German media speculates, can be now in Belarus or Russia.

The Austrian Embassy in Russia told Sputnik that it does not have information about the whereabouts of the former Wirecard top manager. The Kremlin also denied any knowledge about Marsalek's alleged trip to Russia.