WARSAW (Reuters) – A Ukrainian has been found guilty of planning acts of sabotage on behalf of Russian services and sentenced to eight years in prison, a Polish court ruled on Friday.
Poland and other NATO countries have been experiencing increased sabotage, subversion and other “hybrid warfare” activity by Moscow since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago. Russia has regularly denied involvement.
Serhii S. was arrested in January last year and charged with operating in an organised criminal group aimed at committing crimes against Poland by participating in the activities of foreign intelligence and preparing to set fire to buildings in Wroclaw in southern Poland.
During the investigation and the trial, he pleaded not guilty, saying he was motivated by financial gain and had no intention of actually setting fire to factory buildings or construction stores in Wroclaw, Polish news agency PAP reported.
In September, prosecutors filed a motion to sentence him to 3 years imprisonment without trial, but the court rejected the motion, saying the punishment agreed by prosecutors and Serhii S. was too mild.
On Friday the Wroclaw District court found Serhii S. guilty. He has the right to appeal the verdict.
Western officials believe agents paid by Russia are behind a number of crimes across Europe, including break-ins and arson at factories and critical infrastructure, physical attacks and even a reported plot to assassinate the head of Germany’s largest arms company.
(Reporting by Anna Koper; Editing by Giles Elgood)
