In Poland, 14 foreigners convicted of spying for Russia

On Tuesday, December 19, a Polish court convicted 14 members of a spy network accused of intelligence activities and of having prepared acts of sabotage for the benefit of Russia. The defendants were indicted in November for acts including sabotaging trains carrying military and humanitarian aid to neighboring Ukraine and surveillance of Polish military installations.

“After reviewing the case, the court found all the defendants guilty of the crimes charged, and found that some of them were operating within an organized criminal group”, announced Judge Jaroslaw Kowalski while pronouncing the verdict. The fourteen accused “Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians”, according to the court spokesperson, were not present in the courtroom, after having all pleaded guilty. Among the condemned is Maxim S., a Russian ice hockey player playing in a Polish club in Sosnowiec.

Two other alleged members of the ring, who withdrew their initial guilty pleas, will be tried separately. According to investigators, members of the network received orders via the messaging application Telegram and were paid in cryptocurrencies. They also allegedly distributed propaganda materials inciting hatred towards the Ukrainian people. Polish media reported that the amounts collected ranged from $300 to around $10,000.