Lyce · Hybrid Watch
hw_08350a9b60ed2287
Russian-directed arson plot targets PPG Industries paint factory in Wrocław.
In January 2024, Polish security services disrupted preparations for an arson attack against a paint factory in Wrocław. On 31 January, the Internal Security Agency detained a Ukrainian national who, according to ABW, was operating within an organised criminal group and preparing acts of diversion and sabotage on instructions from Russian intelligence services. Investigators said the planned activities involved setting fire to buildings in Wrocław situated close to infrastructure of strategic importance, and evidence relating to the planned crime was recovered during the suspect’s detention and search. Agencja Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego The PISM White Paper identifies the specific target as a paint factory belonging to the American company PPG Industries and records the incident in its appendix as a thwarted arson attack against a chemical factory in Wrocław, attributed to Russian intelligence. PISM states that the facility was located near fuel-storage infrastructure and the Oder River, meaning that a successful attack could potentially have caused serious environmental contamination; it also reports that Serhiy S., aged 51, had been promised $4,000 to carry out the assignment. Pism The attack was prevented before any fire was started, so the incident should be recorded as a thwarted sabotage plot rather than a completed arson attack. Subsequent Polish prosecution records confirm that Serhiy S. was convicted for preparations to conduct diversionary activities involving the burning of buildings in Wrocław.
E/M/R/S scores
- EExistence0/4 · Not assessed
- MIntent0/4 · Not assessed
- RRussian actor link0/4 · Not assessed
- SRussian state responsibility0/4 · Not assessed
Facts
No facts
Sources
-
- Role
- discovery_lead
- Date
- 2024-01-31T09:51:04Z
In January 2024, Polish security services disrupted preparations for an arson attack against a paint factory in Wrocław. On 31 January, the Internal Security Agency detained a Ukrainian national who, according to ABW, was operating within an organised criminal group and preparing acts of diversion and sabotage on instructions from Russian intelligence services. Investigators said the planned activities involved setting fire to buildings in Wrocław situated close to infrastructure of strategic importance, and evidence relating to the planned crime was recovered during the suspect’s detention and search. Agencja Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego The PISM White Paper identifies the specific target as a paint factory belonging to the American company PPG Industries and records the incident in its appendix as a thwarted arson attack against a chemical factory in Wrocław, attributed to Russian intelligence. PISM states that the facility was located near fuel-storage infrastructure and the Oder River, meaning that a successful attack could potentially have caused serious environmental contamination; it also reports that Serhiy S., aged 51, had been promised $4,000 to carry out the assignment. Pism The attack was prevented before any fire was started, so the incident should be recorded as a thwarted sabotage plot rather than a completed arson attack. Subsequent Polish prosecution records confirm that Serhiy S. was convicted for preparations to conduct diversionary activities involving the burning of buildings in Wrocław.