Two Ukrainian men allegedly committed sabotage on Polish railways by entering from Belarus with fake passports, now faced with charges of terrorist sabotage.
Fake Passports
According to Onet, Jewhienij Iwanow and Ołeksandr Kononow, Ukrainian citizens suspected of carrying out sabotage on Polish railways, entered Poland from Belarus using false passports. They were to stay in the country for only a few hours, delegating the main actions to accomplices who have already been arrested. Investigators say Iwanow and Kononow were the brains of the operation, and their brief presence was meant to hinder identification, while a quick exit through the Terespol border crossing allowed them to avoid arrest.
Links of the Suspects
Ukrainian media reports indicate Iwanow was recruited by Russian Special Services no later than early 2024. Kononow reportedly comes from Donbas. Former Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in the Sejm that none of the suspects had previously been convicted in Ukraine for anti‑state activities.
Sabotage on the Tracks
The investigation in Poland began on Monday, 17 November, and by Wednesday the prosecutor’s office had decided to charge both men with committing acts of sabotage of a terrorist nature on behalf of the Russian Federation. They face up to life imprisonment. The case concerns a damaged track fragment found in the village of Mika (Masovian Voivodeship) caused by explosive material.
Predictable Scenario?
To understand why the saboteurs could enter Poland, we asked Dr. Michał Piekarski of the University of Wrocław. He noted the lack of central databases between Poland and Ukraine and the possibility of using false documents could impede verification of people crossing the border. “There is no automatic data flow between registers of convicted persons and those of suspected or notated by services,” he said. “Importantly, these individuals could pose as legitimate using false documents, making verification even harder, and they could simply have entered Polish territory.”
