According to Poland’s National Prosecutor’s Office
The District Court for the Praga district of Warsaw has found three Ukrainian nationals guilty of participating in an organized criminal group that operated with the aim of carrying out sabotage and terrorist attacks in Poland and across the EU.
This was announced by Poland’s National Public Prosecutor’s Office.
According to the court’s decision dated September 18, the convicted individuals, during 2023–2024, took part in the activities of an international criminal group operating in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, and Russia. The perpetrators planned and carried out arson attacks on large commercial facilities in EU countries, including to sow fear among the population and influence public opinion.
to sow fear among the population and influence public opinion
Further Investigation and Indictments
Serhiy R. and Pavlo T. faced additional charges for aiding the escape of the suspect Serhiy Chaly after the arsons of IKEA stores in Vilnius on May 9, 2024 and the Marywilska 44 shopping center in Warsaw on May 12, 2024. They helped him hide, bought tickets, arranged his departure from Poland, and paid for his stay at a hotel in Austria.
The court sentenced Pavlo T. to 5 years and 6 months of imprisonment, Serhiy R. to 2 years and 6 months, and Vladyslav Y. to 1 year and 4 months. The sentence has not yet taken effect; one of the convicted has filed a request to prepare the verdict’s reasoning.
The investigation continues. Prosecutors from the Masovian Department for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Corruption established that the group acted on behalf of Russian intelligence and could be connected to a number of arsons in Poland and the Baltic states. One of the suspects – Serhiy Chaly – remains at large and is subject to an EU arrest warrant and an Interpol red notice.
According to the prosecutor’s office, in Poland in recent months 55 people have been detained who acted in the interests of Russian security services.
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