Poland arrests Belarus agent over espionage in Germany, Lithuania

Poland’s intelligence agency has arrested a suspected agent accused of espionage, authorities said today, according to DPA.

A Belarusian national in his early 40s was detained at the beginning of February, the Internal Security Agency – ABW (Agencja Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego) announced, CE Report quotes MIA.

Investigators claim that since June 2024, he had been gathering intelligence for the Belarusian intelligence services on military facilities and critical infrastructure in Poland, Germany, and Lithuania, the German news agency added.

“He collected information, documented it and passed it on to his handlers in Belarus and Russia,” said Jacek Dobrzyński, spokesperson for the coordinator of Poland’s intelligence services.

His alleged reconnaissance efforts in Germany were primarily focused on targets in the north of the country, where he stayed for only a few days, according to the Polish intelligence service.

The arrest was the result of cooperation with German and Lithuanian intelligence agencies, Polish authorities noted.

The suspect has been placed in custody for an initial period of three months. If convicted, he faces a minimum prison sentence of five years.

Poland is one of the key political and military supporters of Ukraine in its war against Russia. The government in Warsaw has accused the intelligence services of Russia and its ally Belarus of sending numerous agents into the country and recruiting saboteurs.

According to Dobrzyński, in the four years since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, 92 suspects have been detained in Poland on charges of espionage or sabotage, including Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, and Polish nationals, DPA recalls.