SPY MENACE IN GERMANY

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 20130, 10 June 1935, Page 7

SPY MENACE IN GERMANY

SEVENTEEN ARRESTS FOR ESPIONAGE ARISTOCRATS AND ARMY OFFICERS SUSPECTED United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright (Received June 9, 6.30 p.m.) LONDON, June 8. The Berlin correspondent of “The News Chronicle” says: "General Goering’s secret police arrested seventeen persons of both sexes, including several aristocrats and a former major of the Germany army, on charges of espionage, following further intensive investigation into activities of Baron van Sosnowsky and his associates.

On February 18 at Berlin, the beautiful golden-haired Baroness von Berg and Frau von Natzner were beheaded for betrayal of official secrets. Herr Hitler declined mercy. The official announcement said that Baron von Sosnowski, the Polish General, and Fraulein von Jena were sentenced to life imprisonment. Later in the day, while the evening papers were still not permitted to publish the report of the sequel to the trial, crowds gathered in the kiosks and round street hoardings, where huge scarlet posters, on which big black type headed “To death,” announced that Benita von Falkenhayn, divorced wife of Baron von Berg, and Frau Renite von Natzner, had been executed by axe for betraying German secrets to the enemy. The 23-year-old von Jena is a descendant of the Hohenzollerns. Baron von Sosnowsky had amazing influence with women, particularly Benita, whom he met at a party in 1925, when she married von Falkenhayn, son of the famous wartime Marshal. Von Falkenhayn divorced her. She was about to marry von Sosnowsky, when she found he was having another love affair. Consequently she married von Berg, former Russian aviator, who later fought with Germany, after the Russian revolution. Von Sosnowsky soon again captivated Benita, whose mother had after the death of Benita’s father, married Baron von Riehtofen. cousin of the aviator, and member of the Crown Prince’s staff. Benita,acted as intermediary between von Sosnowsky and the girls whom he trapped into his service. They held gay parties. The favourite method was to invite girls connected with the Reichwehr, then when the party was at its height, Benita would take a flashlight of them in compromising positions, threaten to send photos to their families unless they would reveal the Reichwehr secrets. Frau von Natzner, aged 32 years, belonged to an aristocratic German family. She divorced her husband, and became a Reichswehr typist in order to keep herself and her father. The defence urged that the pay was so poor she fell an easy prey to Benita’s threats and promises. Similarly von Jena also became a Reichswehr typist. Both, it is alleged, took carbon copies of documents to Benita. Other documents were secretly photographed. It is understood that von Sosnowsky had earlier refused to be exchanged for three German spies imprisoned in Poland, because Baron von Berg agreed to divorce Benita and allow von Sosnowsky to marry her, but the prison officials refused to permit the marriage. Von Sosnowsky started the espionage when he wrongly believed the Nazis had adopted a hostile policy towards Poland.