Poland charges Russian with orchestrating sabotage network

Dec 2, 2025 | Defence, Law

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Polish prosecutors have filed five charges against a Russian national accused of running an espionage and sabotage network in Poland on behalf of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

They are also seeking to obtain an Interpol red notice for the suspect, who carried out his activities from Russia. He is accused of organising and directing a spy ring whose members – mostly Ukrainians and Belarusians – were convicted in Poland in 2023.

Investigators believe that the man, a 28-year-old called Mikhail Mirgorodsky, coordinated intelligence activities in Poland via the Telegram messaging service, including surveillance of military sites, attempted sabotage, and dissemination of pro-Russian propaganda.

They filed five charges against Mirgorodsky, including for establishing and leading an organised criminal group of a terrorist nature, conducting foreign intelligence operations, and financing terrorist crimes. The first charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

The case forms part of a wider investigation into a Russian network active in Poland.

In mid-2023, Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) detained 16 people (13 Ukrainians, two Belarusians and one Russian) who were, in December that year, convicted of carrying out espionage, sabotage and propaganda activities on behalf of Russia.

 

Prosecutors say that further investigation into the group led them to find that Mirgorodsky was responsible for coordinating their activities.

According to the charges, Mirgorodsky instructed the group of at least 30 members to monitor military vehicles and infrastructure, install GPS tracking devices and data transmitters, and distribute pro-Russian and anti-NATO leaflets.

He is also accused of inciting an attempted derailment of a train, an act classified as a terrorist offence, and of inciting members of the network to use violence and threats against Ukrainians and Belarusian dissidents and set fire to their property.

The suspect is not in Poland, and prosecutors say they have been unable to question him. A court in Lublin approved a request for pretrial detention in August, and authorities have issued a domestic arrest warrant and are seeking an Interpol Red Notice.

In a separate statement, the ABW also revealed today that seven other members of the network run by Mirgorodsky are being charged: one Pole, one Lithuanian, three Belarusians, one Ukrainian, and another Russian

“Further actions are also underway to identify at least six additional individuals,” they added.

They ABW also noted that the group “was formed with the direct support and at the request of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, which provided funding and technical support”.

Mirgorodsky’s expertise in cryptocurrency was used by the FSB to help facilitate payments to their operatives.

Since 2023, Poland has been hit by a wave of other espionage and sabotage activities carried out largely by Ukrainian and Belarusian immigrants on behalf of Russia,

Incidents have included a series of arson attacks, including one that destroyed Warsaw’s biggest shipping centre, and, most recently, sabotage of a rail line running between Warsaw and Lublin.

In response, the Polish government has successively closed down all three of Russia’s consulates operating in Poland, first in Poznań last year, followed by Kraków and Gdańsk this year.


Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Służby specjalne (under CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 PL)

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