The Lublin Court of Appeal more than doubled the term for Paweł K., who had been given 3,5 years in January. Prosecutors, who wanted 7,5 years, appealed the original ruling.
Judge Artur Achrymowicz said the lower court had underestimated the need for the punishment to deter others and called its three-year term for the espionage offence grossly lenient.
“Offering to work for a foreign intelligence service, in this case Russian intelligence, the intelligence of a state at war with a country directly neighbouring Poland, a state which makes quite far-reaching hostile gestures towards the Republic of Poland, cannot be treated leniently”, he said.
Investigators said that between December 2022 and March 2024, Paweł K. contacted Russian army officers and others involved in the war in Ukraine by email and messaging apps, offering to join Russian military intelligence. He was to gather information on security at Rzeszów-Jasionka airport, which they said could have helped Russian services plan an attempt on President Volodymyr Zelensky’s life. He also allegedly said he wanted to join the Wagner Group and take Russian citizenship.
The case began with a tip-off from Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office, which said an assassination attempt on Zelensky had been thwarted at Rzeszów airport. Poland’s Internal Security Agency detained the man, from Hrubieszów, in April 2024 and found ammunition where he was staying. He was also convicted of illegal possession of weapons and ammunition.
At trial, he denied the spying allegations and admitted only to finding the ammunition. Earlier statements read out in court said he had tried to help catch Russian war criminals for a financial reward and had deceived Russian services to win their trust.
(jh)
Source: PAP