Bazna, Elyesa ‘Cicero’

   d. 1970

   Bazna was a Turkish subject of Albanian origin who became the highest paid spy in World War II. Before the war he had worked as the valet of the German Ambassador in Ankara, Jenke, RIBBENTROP’s brother-in-law. He had transferred to the British Embassy without difficulty and served as valet to the British Ambassador, Knatchbull- Hugesson during the war. In October 1943 he visited the German embassy and saw the Intelligence Attaché, Moyzisch, to whom he offered secret British documents for £20,000 (US$80,000 at the time). Cicero, as he was codenamed by the Germans, had obtained a key to the embassy safe and was photographing all the papers that passed through the embassy. He supplied the Germans with many important documents including the minutes of the Teheran and Cairo Conferences and details of the planned Allied invasion of Europe. He was paid some £300,000 (US$1,200,000 in the currency of the time) in bank notes but British embassy officials became suspicious and Bazna disappeared. The information he had given the Germans was treated with suspicion by the Germans who thought it was planted, and was never presented to Hitler because Ribbentrop and KALTENBRUNNER argued as to who should present it. Bazna was traced after the war to South America where he was arrested for trying to pass counterfeit money—the Germans had given him forged bank notes. Neither side profited from this coup in espionage.