\n<\/p>\n
A German court sentenced a Ukrainian man to imprisonment on espionage charges on Tuesday, finding him guilty of plotting arson attacks on behalf of Russia, but two other Ukrainian defendants were acquitted.<\/p>\n
The Stuttgart Higher Regional Court imposed a prison sentence of one year and three months. It has not yet commented on the specific charges.<\/p>\n
The three men, aged 22, 25 and 30, were arrested in May last year in Cologne and Konstanz in Germany and in the Swiss canton of Thurgau. They were accused of taking part in a sabotage plot targeting the transport network of a parcel delivery company.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors told the court that, on the orders of a Russian intelligence service, the men sent two packages containing GPS trackers to Ukraine via a Ukrainian postal service in March 2025 to gather information about the routes and transport procedures used by the parcel company. The intelligence service allegedly issued the order via intermediaries from the Ukrainian city of Mariupol.<\/p>\n
According to prosecutors, the next step was for packages to be despatched containing incendiary devices that would ignite during transport.<\/p>\n
The packages were intended “to ignite in Germany or elsewhere en route to parts of Ukraine not occupied by Russia and cause as much damage as possible in order to undermine the population’s sense of security,” prosecutors said. They said the three men had agreed to send the parcels, but their plans were uncovered while they were still preparing the attacks.<\/p>\n
The prosecution had called for sentences ranging from two years and nine months to four years and three months, while the defence had argued for acquittal for all three.<\/p>\n
The case recalls an incident in 2024, when an air-freight package caught fire at a DHL logistics centre in Leipzig. Security officials believe the package was planted there on behalf of Russia.<\/p>\n
The president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution at the time, Thomas Haldenwang, said it was thanks to a stroke of luck that the parcel did not ignite during the flight.<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, a drone equipped with explosives and a detonator was discovered at Leipzig airport near Ukrainian transport aircraft. Separately, an aircraft had collided with an unknown small flying object, which authorities believe could have been a second drone.<\/p>\n
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt described the incident as a “hybrid attack by foreign powers.” Public prosecutors are investigating on suspicion of attempted provocation of an explosion and dangerous interference with air traffic.<\/p>\n