Poland detains Belarusian man on suspicion of spying on NATO defense facilities

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - Polish authorities have detained a Belarusian man on suspicion of spying for Minsk by gathering intelligence on sites including facilities considered important to NATO defense, local media reported on Monday.

In a statement, the National Public Prosecutor’s Office said that the suspect was arrested on Feb. 9 by Internal Security Agency (ABW) agents.

Prosecutors allege that the man – identified only as Pavlov T. in line with Polish privacy laws – carried out espionage activities between June 2024 and February 2026 in Poland, Germany and Lithuania, according to TVP World.

It noted that the arrest and charges were brought in cooperation with German and Lithuanian intelligence services.

The statement said the suspect is being held in pretrial detention for an initial period of three months, and an investigation is ongoing. The suspect could face a minimum prison sentence of five years.

Earlier this month, a Polish court sentenced a man to one year in prison for offering to spy against Poland and the US on behalf of Belarus’ intelligence service.

Last year, Polish authorities also arrested a taxi driver suspected of passing information about the Belarusian diaspora to Minsk.