Hockey player detained in Poland on suspicion of spying for Russia

A Russian hockey player has been detained in Poland on suspicion of espionage: he is believed to have acted in favour of Russia.

Polish Prosecutor General Zbigniew Ziobro reported this.

“Russian spies are falling one by one! Another success for the investigators of the National Prosecutor’s Office and the Internal Security Agency. A spy who acted under the guise of an athlete has been detained,” Ziobro said on Twitter.

Polish Prosecutor General added that the Russian was a player for a 1st League club.

“This is the 14th detained member of the spy network we have exposed. Thank you to the prosecutors and the Internal Security Agency for your dedication to the defence of the homeland!” Ziobro wrote.

The press service of the Minister-Coordinator of Special Services and the press service of the National Prosecutor’s Office reported that the athlete was detained in Silesian Voivodeship on 11 June.

“The detainee is a Russian citizen, a professional athlete of a first-league hockey club. He was performing a task in Poland commissioned by a foreign intelligence service, which included surveillance of critical infrastructure facilities in several voivodeships,” the minister’s office told PAP.

On 16 March, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Minister-Coordinator of Special Services of Poland, Mariusz Kaminski, announced that the Internal Security Agency had dismantled a spy network operating in favour of Russia. Nine people were detained as part of the operation.

Later in March, further detentions of spies exposed by this network took place in Poland.

A close connection between Russian sportsmen and the authorities of the dictatorial regime was highlighted in numerous calls to ban Russian athletes from the Paris 2024 Olympics. At least 35 countries agree to demand the prohibition of Russian and Belarus athletes.

When Russia launched its unprovoked war against Ukraine, the entire world community denounced the war. The world soon came together to help Ukraine, and the international community placed harsh sanctions on the Russian Federation.

The activists say that Russians can be allowed to compete in international sporting competitions again only after Russia’s war on Ukraine is over and Russian troops leave Ukraine.