Berlin launches probe after claims spy HQ plans disappeared

Germany said Monday it has launched a probe into claims that plans for the new headquarters of the nation's top spy service have disappeared, DPA reported.

A government spokesman said a commission of inquiry had been established on Friday to examine the allegations that construction site plans for new Federal Intelligence Service (BND) building in central Berlin had vanished.

"The federal government is interested in clarifying this question as quickly as possibly," Steffen Seibert said.

However, he would not be drawn on how serious Berlin considered the possible disappearance of the plans or what consequences should be drawn from the claims.

Reporting that the documents had gone missing, the weekly magazine Focus said the building plans had been classified being for official use only.

The magazine went on to quote a former leading BND official who said the disappearance of the plans could have considerable consequences.

The official said this could force the organization to rebuild part of the new headquarters to head off concerns from friendly intelligence services, according to the Focus report.

The plans were smuggled out of the building site more than a year ago, the magazine said.

They are said to show details of the exact function of every room in the new complex along with the thickness of walls, where toilets and exits are located as well as security entrances.