The Russian ice hockey player played at the Polish premier league level.
Polish Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro told about the arrest of the Russian athlete. EPA / AOP
Polish Sport.pl-news site reports that the Polish police have arrested a Russian ice hockey player playing in the country. The name of the suspect has been reported Maksim S and he is said to have arrived in the country in October 2021.
According to the Russian Championat, a total of seven Russians play in the main series.
The ice hockey player was arrested on suspicion of spying activities harmful to Poland. He is said to have done research work on Poland’s critical infrastructure and received remuneration for it from a foreign entity.
According to the prosecutor, the Russian is the 14th person who has been arrested from the espionage network doing intelligence work for Russia. Russian espionage has increased in Poland during the war in neighboring Ukraine.
Minister of Justice of Poland Zbigniew Ziobro celebrated the arrest on Twitter and thanked the authorities for finding the spy.
– Russian spies fall one by one! A spy working under the guise of sports was caught. The Russian was a player of a major league club, the minister writes.
According to the Russian Sport Expressen, the Russian Duma has reacted to the arrest. It denies that the player is guilty of espionage and accuses Poland of discriminating against Russians. The Russian administration says it is ready to take legal action to get the ice hockey player to Russia.