According to the Polish radio channel RMF, the suspects were caught when dozens of hidden cameras were found on the sides and intersections of important train tracks, which recorded and transmitted information about the traffic.
Poland’s counterintelligence has broken up a spy group that collected intelligence information for Russia, says the country’s interior minister Mariusz Kamiński.
According to Kamiński, the group included nine people, all of whom are now under arrest. The group is said to have prepared sabotage against the railways leading to Ukraine. The group is also said to have monitored the railways in question.
– In recent days, nine people have been arrested who are suspected of having cooperated with the Russian intelligence service FSB.
– The suspects carried out intelligence activities against Poland and prepared sabotage at the request of the Russian intelligence service, Kamiński told the press conference.
Kamiński did not provide specific information about the suspects’ nationalities. However, according to him, the suspects are “foreign citizens from countries located to the east of Poland”.
According to Kamiński, six suspects have already been charged with spying for Russia and participating in the activities of an organized criminal group. He added that the prosecution process for the other three participants is still ongoing.
The Polish counter-intelligence seized the cameras, electronic devices and GPS transmitters used by the group, which were supposed to be installed in the transports to Ukraine, Kamiński says.
– The group had also been ordered to engage in propaganda activities to undermine relations between Poland and Ukraine. They had been paid for this activity, Kamiński added.
The group’s hidden cameras were found near the train tracks
According to the private Polish radio channel RMF, the suspects were caught when dozens of hidden cameras were found on the sides and intersections of important train tracks, which recorded and transmitted information about the traffic.
The majority were found on railway sections leading to the south-eastern part of the country, such as near the airport, which is one of the main transport points for Western weapons and ammunition bound for Ukraine.
The authorities are now on high alert, and the security of railways and strategic infrastructure has been strengthened, RMF says.
Poland has supported Ukraine significantly since the large-scale war of aggression started by Russia. The country has hosted more than 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees and supplied Ukraine with military aid such as battle tanks.
Source: Reuters, STT