Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard is refusing to disclose why the police received internal notes from journalists via Amira Smajic, according to a response to the Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee. The refusal comes amid scrutiny over Smajic’s collaboration with TV 2 on the documentary “The Black Swan” while simultaneously acting as a source for the National Unit for Special Crime (NSK).

Karina Lorentzen Dehnhardt from SF questioned the police’s interest in notebooks and pictures from the newsroom, especially in light of revelations in the documentary’s latest episodes, which showed Smajic photographing a TV 2 journalist’s notebook and sending the images to her handlers in NSK. Despite the questions, the specific purpose behind the police’s actions remains undisclosed.

The Ministry of Justice, in its response to the Legal Affairs Committee, stated that NSK “cannot comment further on the issues raised in the documentary within the framework of a parliamentary response – not even in confidential form.”

The documentary episodes also depict Smajic stealing files from a journalist’s hard drive. Messages between Smajic and her police handlers indicate plans to review the hard drive together. There appeared to be no objections from the police regarding receiving confidential material about the journalists’ work. One message from the police contact to Smajic noted the difficulty in deciphering the journalist’s notes, describing it as a “foreign or underground script” and “damn chicken scratch.”

TV 2 has characterized the situation as espionage against journalists, which has sparked widespread criticism, including from a former employee of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET) who also worked as a source handler. Despite the controversy, NSK’s management has declined to answer questions, and now the Minister of Justice is also remaining silent.

The Independent Police Complaints Authority (DUP) has initiated an investigation into potential legal violations by the police. The investigation is focused on several episodes featured in the two most recent installments of “The Black Swan”.