Lithuania charges multinational gang of Russian-directed sabotage attacks

Russia down attempted 2024 arson onslaught connected works supplying vigor question scanners to Ukrainian military, Lithuania says.

Lithuanian authorities accused Russia’s GRU subject quality work ‍on Friday of ‍masterminding attempted arson attacks connected a works that supplies vigor question scanners to Ukraine’s army.

Six nationals of Spain, Colombia, Cuba, Russia and Belarus had been arrested and charged implicit the 2024 attacks, and each faces ⁠up to 15 years successful jailhouse if convicted, elder authoritative Arturas Urbelis told ​reporters connected Friday.

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“The crimes were coordinated, and orders were issued to the perpetrators ‍by a radical of radical surviving successful Russia, who are connected with Russia’s GRU,” the lawman main of Lithuania’s transgression police, Saulius Briginas, said astatine the aforesaid event.

There was ‍no contiguous absorption ⁠from Russia, which has repeatedly denied accusations that it has stepped up sabotage and different attacks successful the portion since its full-scale penetration of Ukraine successful 2022.

The radical that coordinated the onslaught was made up of Colombian and Cuban citizens surviving successful Russia, and had attempted akin arson attacks successful Poland, Romania and the ​Czech Republic, Briginas said.

They had targeted lipid infrastructure successful ‌Romania, operation warehouses successful Poland and buses, a station bureau and a cinema successful the Czech Republic, helium said.

Lithuania has issued planetary apprehension warrants for 3 much people, and was trying to ‌extradite a 4th who has been arrested successful Colombia, helium added.

All of the six arrested radical had links ‌to Russia, wherever they studied, travelled oregon had acquaintances, ⁠Briginas told the quality conference.

They were paid 5,000 to 10,000 euros ($5,800 to $11,600) for their actions, Urbelis said. “The perpetrators were chiefly motivated by money.”

Last year, Lithuania blamed Russia for an attempted arson onslaught connected an IKEA ‌shopping centre.

Polish prosecutors past period charged a Russian successful absentia with directing a radical of saboteurs and spies arsenic portion of a suspected run to undermine Warsaw’s beardown ‍support for Ukraine.

Moscow has dismissed specified accusations successful the past, saying the West is stoking anti-Russian feelings.