The German Agent was a Nazi Gestapo agent working in Cairo, Egypt working with a partner. He used the one-eyed Monkey Man and his Capuchin monkey as an informant, and also had a group of local toughs under his leadership.
In 1936, the German agent and his partner monitored the movements of archaeologist Indiana Jones, through the Monkey Man. When Indiana Jones and Marion Ravenwood were in a Cairo marketplace, their monkey took off and reported to his master. The Monkey Man then ran into a shadowy hallway to meet with the German agent and his partner. After exchanging Nazi salutes, the German agent and his partner went off to summon the band of henchmen to attack the Americans.
Watching the marketplace from an upstairs balcony and enjoying a cigarette, the agent entered a room with the assembled thugs and indicated that it was time to go intercept Jones and Ravenwood. Tailing the couple to an alley, he led a group of dark-hooded into the alley after them, and sent the men to attack.
When Jones managed to fend off the first wave of attackers, he put Ravenwood in the back of a cart. The cart took off further down the alley, passing the Monkey Man and the agent who saw her escape, and motioned for another thug to catch her.
On the trail of Ravenwood, the agent and his partner led a group down a passageway, and passed by a pile of baskets. When the monkey caught their attention with its screeching, the agent called out and all of the them doubled back to capture Ravenwood hiding in a basket.
The agents then went to the truck, already loaded with explosives, to load the prisoner aboard. When Jones arrived at the truck, the agent aimed his pistol at Jones, who had dived behind a building to avoid the machine gun fire of one of the goons. The agent moved away from the truck, while his partner boarded it.
By killing the driver, Jones ended up destroying the truck, and killing the agent's partner.
The agent, along with another agent, found Jones grieving with a bottle of alcohol outside of the Marhala Bar. Approaching the inebriated archaeologist, the agent told Jones in German that a man in the bar wanted to talk to him. Escorting Jones inside, the agent let Jones talk to Belloq, keeping an eye on him. When Jones began to reach for his revolver, the agent drew his pistol, as did all the Arabs in the bar. However, the situation was defused when Sallah's children surrounded the American, and escorted him outside. The agent put away his pistol.
Behind the scenes
The role of the German Agent was played by Steve Hanson in Raiders of the Lost Ark. The German Agent wears the same costume throughout the Cairo scenes: Tan suit, dark tie, and a hat.
In the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! at Disney World, this German Agent and the second German Agent are both absent from the scene with Indy and Marion fighting the Arabs. In their place is a single black suited German Agent.