The former President of the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), Arne Schönbohm, will not face disciplinary proceedings following his dismissal from the role. The Federal Ministry of the Interior has reportedly told Schönbohm’s lawyers that there was no evidence to support such action, saying that a procedure would not be initiated. Schönbohm was initially blocked from continuing his duties in October and later dismissed from the job. Whilst the official justification states that trust in his administration was “permanently damaged”, no other explanation has been provided by the ministry.
Schönbohm was previously put under pressure following a broadcast in which he was linked to the “Cyber Security Council Germany” (CSRD) association and Russian secret service circles. He had co-founded the CSRD, which was controversial in political circles, but later distanced himself from the group. There were suspicions that these accusations were unlikely to be sustained – instead, Faeser is believed to have wanted to remove a combative expert from their position.
Schönbohm himself had ultimately requested disciplinary proceedings in order to clarify the allegations. However, the Federal Ministry of the Interior has now confirmed in writing that a six-month preliminary investigation has not revealed any indications of disciplinary proceedings. This took significantly longer than the usual three months.
Schönbohm is now President of the Federal Academy for Public Administration in Brühl, which is responsible for the further training of civil servants and is assigned to the BMI. His salary level was reportedly raised for this role. As he is not a political official who can easily be transferred, Faeser had to find an equivalent position for him in her area of responsibility. The ministry has declined to provide any comment on the matter.
