A court in Germany sentenced three defendants for espionage and preparing sabotage in the interests of Russian special services, writes DW*. The main defendant, Dieter Sch., was sentenced to 6 years in prison for preparing sabotage and participating in military actions in eastern Ukraine; from 2014-2016, he fought in Ukraine on the side of pro-Russian armed formations in the self-proclaimed DNR. The other two defendants were given suspended sentences of 6 months and 1 year.
The defendants are accused of working for Russian special services, as well as collecting secret information and preparing sabotage on the railway. All three accused have dual citizenship — Germany and Russia, and they were detained in April last year.
According to the investigation, the defendants monitored the movements of military equipment and the transportation of ammunition, including those intended for shipment to Ukraine. In addition, they collected information about an oil refinery in Bavaria and about American servicemen at the Grafenwöhr base in Upper Palatinate.
The investigation also believes that the accused planned to carry out explosions and arson of military infrastructure and railways to hinder the supply of military aid to Ukraine.
* Recognized in Russia as a 'foreign agent'.