The high-security trial of German steakhouse heiress Christina Block in Hamburg has reached its 15th month, having unraveled into one of Germany's most prominent legal disputes and triggering a related espionage investigation.
Block, whose family established the Block House restaurant chain, is accused alongside family lawyer Andreas Costard and Israeli citizen Jonathan G of ordering the violent kidnapping of two of her children from Denmark. Her partner, former television sports presenter Gerhard Delling, and three others face charges of aiding and abetting.
Prosecutors state that the operation occurred during New Year celebrations between 2023 and 2024. According to the indictment, several men ambushed and beat Block's former husband, Stephan Hensel, while he and the children, aged 10 and 13, were watching fireworks. The assailants allegedly bound the children, taped their mouths, and transported them by car and campervan to Baden-Württemberg, where Block collected them on Jan. 2, 2024.
Block and Costard have denied the charges, which include abduction of minors, grievous bodily harm, and unlawful detention. In court, Block insisted she knew nothing of the abduction plan and said it was "a catastrophe" that she had never wanted. However, David Barkay, head of the Israeli security team, testified that Block and Costard were aware of the repatriation mission, though he withheld specific details because he "didn't trust them."
Jonathan G admitted his role in the operation, telling the court he believed he was participating in a rescue effort. The cross-border dispute follows a protracted custody battle that began after Hensel retained the two youngest children in Denmark following a visit in 2021. German and Danish courts subsequently issued conflicting rulings regarding their care.
The proceedings also led investigators to search the home of 80-year-old August Hanning, Germany's former intelligence chief, over claims he helped arrange security personnel for an earlier attempted abduction in 2022. While Hanning faces no charges in the Hamburg case, police uncovered evidence that prompted his arrest this month on charges of treason and espionage, alleging he bought roughly 2,000 state documents and passed secrets to an unspecified foreign power.
The trial in Hamburg is currently paused for two weeks after Hensel's current wife failed to appear as a witness.
