Three Swedes of Iranian origin went on trial today accused of espionage and industrial espionage at telecoms equipment maker Ericsson, in a case which led to the expulsion of two Russian diplomats.
Swedish police arrested the suspects in November when the alleged ringleader was handing over Ericsson documents to a Russian intelligence officer, said Chief Prosecutor Thomas Wikstrom.
The lead suspect, Mr Afshin Bavand, tested hardware for Ericsson until losing his job after six years in August 2001. He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The two other suspects, Mr Mansour Rokkgrieh and Mr Alireza Rafiei Bejarkenari, still worked for Ericsson when arrested on charges of assisting in industrial espionage. They face up to six years in prison. All three pleaded not guilty.
"The crimes have damaged Sweden's civil defence or national safety," Mr Wikstrom told a district court. After the charges were read in public the trial moved behind closed doors.
Ericsson spokesman Mr Henry Stenson called it an "attack from a foreign country's intelligence service aimed at controlling mobile and fixed line telecoms networks...to get into the system and shut it down or listen to it or control it".
But he said no secrets were stolen from Ericsson's defence unit, which makes guided missile systems.