A Polish citizen has been detained on charges of espionage for Russia, the republic’s general prosecutor’s office reported. According to the Polish official agency PAP, we are talking about a former journalist of the major Polish publication Wprost.
“On the instructions of the prosecutor of the Mazovian Interdistrict Department for Organized Crime and Corruption in Warsaw, on May 31, 2021, employees of the Internal Security Agency detained Janusz N., the prosecutor charged the detainee with espionage”, – the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
It is noted that the court granted the prosecutor’s request and made a decision on the temporary arrest of the defendant.
The Prosecutor General’s Office clarified that Yanush N. was charged with “spying for the special services of the Russian Federation”. He faces a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
According to the prosecutor’s office, during the procedural measures, searches were carried out at the place of residence of Janusz N. and not only, money in the equivalent of more than 300 thousand zlotys (over 80 thousand dollars) and a large number of electronic media were seized.
In the course of the investigation, the prosecutor established that “the suspect conducted activities in favor of the Russian Federation, which he intensified after his colleague was previously detained on suspicion of espionage”.
“Janusz N., on behalf of persons acting in the interests of Russian intelligence, tried to establish contact with Polish and foreign politicians, including those working in the European Parliament. The suspect conducted his activities on the territory of Poland, the European Union and other countries with the aim of weakening Poland’s positions in The EU and in the international arena”, – the message says.
In mid-May, the Polish authorities announced the arrest of Marcin K., he was also accused of spying for Russia.