The National Prosecutor’s Office of Poland sent an indictment to the court on Wednesday in the case of a spy network operating in Poland. The investigation, during which 16 people were arrested, was conducted by the Internal Security Agency (ABW), Polskie Radio reports.

Poland’s Minister of Special Services, Stanislaw Zarin, confirmed on Wednesday that Polish authorities have destroyed a network of 16 people who allegedly spied for Russia and were preparing sabotage on the border between Poland and Ukraine, EFE and Agerpres news agencies reported.

In an interview with the Polish media, the minister explained that this network poses a “very serious threat” to the security of Poland and carries out “pro-Russian” activities by spreading anti-Ukrainian propaganda, as well as by preparing sabotage actions against logistics points near the border with Ukraine.

“Their plans included the descent of aid convoys to Ukraine”

The 16 defendants, who lived in Warsaw and cities in eastern Poland such as Chelm, Medyka, Przemyśl and Rzeszów, are at the disposal of the prosecutor’s office in Lublin (east) and, according to the minister, come from “countries on the other side of the border from the east” of Poland.

This spy network was formed, as reported by Polskie Radio, from 12 citizens of Ukraine, one Russian and three citizens of Belarus, who cooperated with Moscow’s special services.

According to the information made public by Zarina, all the defendants have pleaded guilty and face at least ten years in prison.

“Members of this network regularly monitored critical infrastructure, military facilities, ports and railways, sold this information to their contacts, and their plans included derailing convoys carrying aid to Ukraine,” the Polish minister said.

Fifteen of them are currently in preventive detention by court decision.

In total, 30 people have been arrested in Poland on espionage charges

In March, Warsaw already announced the destruction of the Russian spy network, but then the authorities reported only the detention of six alleged agents who were operating on its territory in favor of Russia.

In messages posted on his social media accounts on Wednesday, Minister Zarin stressed that “Russia continues its disinformation activities against the Republic of Poland” and warned against online campaigns by which Moscow “seeks to portray Poland as an aggressive country” that “is trying to destabilize Belarus” and “has territorial claims against Ukraine.”

The total number of people arrested in Poland on charges of espionage in favor of Moscow currently exceeds 30 people, the EFE agency reports.

On March 23, 2022, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Polish government expelled 45 Russian diplomats from the embassy in Warsaw on suspicion of espionage, which, according to experts, sharply reduced Russia’s ability to obtain information from Poland.

From that moment, according to experts, Moscow conducted a campaign of recruiting spies and collaborators through its special services in Poland.

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