A 28-year-old Belarusian man, known only as Vitaliy S. under Polish privacy laws, has been convicted in Poland for preparing an act of sabotage in the form of arson on behalf of foreign intelligence. The sabotage preparation was aimed at a warehouse in Chełm, eastern Poland, in July 2025. He was paid approximately 1,474 zloty (€337) in cryptocurrency and was recruited via Telegram messaging service. Vitaliy S. was detained in August 2025, charged with espionage, and agreed to a prison sentence of three and a half years at the start of his trial in July 2026 at the regional court in Lublin. The foreign intelligence service he worked for has not been officially identified. Poland attributes many similar sabotage and espionage activities to Russian and Belarusian agents, often using 'disposable agents' like immigrants or refugees already residing in Poland, recruited via Telegram and paid in cryptocurrency. Recent attacks blamed on Russia include arson at Warsaw's largest shopping center, drone factories, satellite internet ground stations, and attempts to derail trains using explosives.

A 28-year-old Belarusian man, known only as Vitaliy S. under Polish privacy laws, has been convicted in Poland for preparing an act of sabotage in the form of arson on behalf of foreign intelligence. The sabotage preparation was aimed at a warehouse in Chełm, eastern Poland, in July 2025. He was paid approximately 1,474 zloty (€337) in cryptocurrency and was recruited via Telegram messaging service. Vitaliy S. was detained in August 2025, charged with espionage, and agreed to a prison sentence of three and a half years at the start of his trial in July 2026 at the regional court in Lublin. The foreign intelligence service he worked for has not been officially identified. Poland attributes many similar sabotage and espionage activities to Russian and Belarusian agents, often using 'disposable agents' like immigrants or refugees already residing in Poland, recruited via Telegram and paid in cryptocurrency. Recent attacks blamed on Russia include arson at Warsaw's largest shopping center, drone factories, satellite internet ground stations, and attempts to derail trains using explosives.