Otto Pünter (4 April 1900 – 13 October 1988)^[1] was a Swiss journalist and anti-Nazi resistance fighter. During the Second World War, his codename was Pakbo, and he was a member of the Rote Drei.

Pünter was born in Bern, Switzerland.^[1] His father was a merchant.^[1] He gained an apprenticeship from the University of Neuchâtel.^[2] Afterwards, he lived in France, Spain and the United Kingdom.^[3]

In 1928, Pünter was a founding member of the socialist news agency INSA.^[2][3] INSA aimed to spread anti-fascist news and worked with anti-fascist groups in Italy.^[3] Through this role, Pünter met many Italian informants.^[4] Pünter was also suspected to be a secret member of the Communist Party of Switzerland,^[5] and he saw Stalinism as less evil than fascism, Nazism, and Francoism.^[6] During the Spanish Civil War, it was claimed that Pünter built his own intelligence network, in order to sell secrets to the French and British.^[7] He also met many Soviet GRU agents, and decided to become a Soviet spy.^[4]

During the Second World War, Pünter was a member of the Red Orchestra,^[1] and the Red Three.^[8] His codename was Pakbo,^[1] or sometimes Paquebot,^[8] and Pünter worked with the Soviet intelligence agencies.^[1] His encryption methods included crosswords and lemon juice.^[3] Others in the movement included Georges Blun (codename Long) and Rachel Dübendorfer (codename Sissy),^[9][10] and they collaborated with Hungarian spy Alexander Radó.^[11][12] Pünter helped Georges Blun to become part of Radó's network,^[4] and Pünter also managed a Yugoslav spy codenamed Gabel, and a German social democrat codenamed Poisson.^[13] Radó was accused of using Pünter to sell information to the British secret service.^[7]

In 1941, Pünter claimed he had intelligence from the French of the German invasion of the USSR; his source was said to be Rudolf Roessler. The information was believed to be fabricated.^[5] Pünter also claimed to have received information from German general Alfred Jodl, and had a team of agents in a secret monastery location in the Alps. None of these claims have ever proved to have been true.^[5] However, the USSR saw Pünter as an important ally, and Pünter was called one of the most useful agents in Switzerland.^[6]

After the War, he became President of the Association of Federal Parliament Journalists.^[1] From 1956 to 1965, he was the head of public relations of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG).^[1][2][3] Afterwards, he worked as a district judge.^[3] In 1966, he appeared on a panel discussion show about Switzerland's involvement in the Second World War.^[14]

In 1948, he was awarded the Turin journalism prize.^[3] In 1975, he was awarded the Hans Bredow medal for services to radio. The ceremony was in West Berlin.^[1][2]

• Pünter, Otto, Wie es war: Erinnerungen eines Journalisten, 1919–1977 (How it was: memories of a journalist, 1919–1977), Cosmos-Verlag, 1977 ISBN 978-3856210311
• Pünter, Otto, Payot, Marc, Guerre secrète en pays neutre: Les révélations d'un agent secret sur l'espionnage en Suisse contre le fascisme et Hitler 1930–1945 (Secret war in a neutral country: The revelations of a secret agent on espionage in Switzerland against fascism and Hitler 1930–1945), 1967^[15]