Two citizens of Belarus are in pre-trial detention in Bavaria on suspicion of preparing arson and conducting agent activity for sabotage purposes. According to Der Spiegel, they planned to set fire near the railway tracks and a power line near Nuremberg, and also took part in an arson attack on an industrial park in Romania.
The case was revealed by Der Spiegel, citing sources in the security services. The Federal Prosecutor General’s Office in Munich initially declined to comment on the reports, but later, as the German press agency dpa reports, the Bavarian Central Office for the Fight against Extremism and Terrorism (ZET) confirmed that it is conducting an investigation. It concerns conspiracy to commit arson and agent activity for sabotage purposes (nordbayern.de).
What is known about the suspects
The detained men are citizens of Belarus, aged 50 and 39. They have been in pre-trial detention since 7 October. According to the prosecutors, the target was supposed to be a building or critical infrastructure facility that they intended to set on fire, causing significant damage. As the statement noted, this was to threaten the security of Germany. The exact target has not been disclosed. Both men are suspects, not convicted.
„Spiegel” writes that the plan involved a fire near a railway line and a power route in the Nuremberg area (Tagesspiegel, citing Reuters). However, the prosecutors’ statement did not specify the location so precisely.
The Romanian angle
According to „Spiegel”, both are also suspects in Romania. They allegedly took part in the arson of an industrial park in Brasov on the night of 14 September; a defence industry plant is located nearby. Romania’s intelligence service SRI announced on Monday that it had uncovered a Russian-controlled sabotage network responsible for a fire in central Romania. Romania’s prosecutor’s office for organised crime is seeking the extradition of the two Belarusians detained in Germany and a Ukrainian held in custody in Poland. It was stated that the two Belarusians will remain in German custody for now.
Another case with a Polish thread
Dpa recalls that in mid-October two suspected saboteurs were detained in Germany on suspicion of setting fire to a Starlink station in Poland. We wrote about this in our article about the detention of two Turks after the arson of a Starlink station in Masovia.
What it means
For readers in Poland, the key thread is the Ukrainian detained in Poland, whom Romania wants to prosecute in the same case. As of publication, it has not been reported who allegedly commissioned the operation in Germany or whether the suspects have yet been formally charged. Russia and Belarus have not responded to the reports.
