Nationwide investigation into suspected Russian sabotage in Leipzig

According to a media report, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office is now investigating the case of an air freight parcel fire in Leipzig in July that was allegedly initiated by Russia. A spokesperson for the Karlsruhe authority told Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND): "The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating parcel shipments that caught fire in July while being transported via the DHL freight center in Leipzig." The Federal Public Prosecutor General becomes active, among other things, when criminal offenses are directed against the Federal Republic of Germany.

The chairman of the Parliamentary Control Committee (PKGr) of the Bundestag, Konstantin von Notz (Green Party), told RND: "If the suspicion that this was a targeted sabotage operation is confirmed, then we are dealing with a highly dramatic and serious incident. I expect all security authorities and the judiciary to work flat out to fully clarify the background."

Delay may have prevented crash

According to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany narrowly avoided a plane crash in July. It was only thanks to a lucky coincidence that the parcel caught fire on the ground in the DHL logistics center and not during the flight, said the President of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Thomas Haldenwang, during a public questioning of the German secret services in the Bundestag. Otherwise the plane would have crashed. In security circles, it is assumed that the incident is connected to Russian sabotage.

According to dpa information, the fortunate coincidence was that the onward flight of the cargo package originating from the Baltic States was delayed in Leipzig. The package contained an incendiary device that ignited there and set fire to a freight container.