A Finnish professor at the University of Copenhagen has been given a five month jail sentence in Denmark for cooperation with Russian secret services, the Copenhagen Post said.
Timo Kivimäki, 49, a professor of international politics at the University of Copenhagen, did not expect to be found guilty under the ‘mild’ anti-spy legislation.
”I was expecting to be let off,” Kivimäki told Ekstra Bladet following the closed trial. “[The domestic intelligence agency] PET alleges that the diplomats I was in touch with were spies. I just thought they were ordinary diplomats.”
According to the press release from the city court in Glostrup, Kivimäki was found guilty of handing over documents, including the CVs of four employees at the Center for Military Studies in Copenhagen, to Russian diplomats during his meetings with them between 2002 and 2010.
Kivimäki was also found guilty of attempting to hand over a list of student names, along with the CV of the head of the Center for Military Studies. He was found with these documents in his possession when he was arrested in September 2010.
Several Russian diplomats left Denmark after the start of the spy case. PET said Kivimäki received about 21,500 euros for his information. Kivimäki was critical of the conviction and questioned PET's agenda.
“The court has believed PET’s paranoia,” Kivimäki told Ekstra Bladet. “The intelligence agency wants the population to believe that the country is full of spies and terrorists so PET can get more resources.”
