Two Russian Suspects Identified in Leipzig Airport Drone Attack
German media identified two Russian-linked suspects in last month's explosives drone incident at Leipzig airport. Berlin blamed Moscow and closed a Russian consulate in response.
Two Russian Suspects Named in Leipzig Airport Explosives Drone Incident
German police have identified two suspects with Russian ties in connection with an attempted "hybrid attack" involving an explosives-laden drone at Leipzig airport last month, Courthouse News Service reports, citing German media outlets including Sueddeutsche Zeitung and regional broadcasters NDR and WDR.
The first suspect is a Belarusian national who also holds a Russian passport. He is believed to have entered the Schengen area using an Italian tourist visa issued in Minsk, and had previously drawn attention for offences in the Baltic states. His DNA was reportedly recovered at the airport.
The second suspect holds both Latvian and Russian passports and allegedly served as a logistics coordinator and instructor for the operation. He flew into Berlin airport at the end of July, rented a car, and travelled to the Leipzig region before leaving Germany two days prior to the suspected attack.
Investigators linked both men to the scene through DNA traces found at and around the airport — on a drone, inside a tin can filled with explosives, and on an antenna fastened to a tree. Matches were identified through European databases, including records in Lithuania and Finland, and were corroborated by intelligence agencies, the outlets reported.
The drone was found inside a secure cargo operations area at Leipzig airport, near a Ukrainian cargo plane. A second drone, also bearing traces of explosive material, was later discovered in the vicinity of the airport.
The German government on Tuesday formally attributed the incident to Russia, stating that Moscow had employed "low-level agents." In response, Berlin announced it would close the Russian consulate in Bonn and a Russian cultural centre in Berlin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday he had spoken by telephone with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz about what he described as "Russia's attack" on German soil. "This is yet another Russian escalation, and it is important that Germany responded," Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called Germany's reaction "a mistake, a serious one." Moscow said Wednesday it was summoning Germany's charge d'affaires to protest what it characterised as "anti-Russian actions and statements by the German authorities."
Source: Courthouse News Service