Suspect in Slovak arson attempt says he was hired via Telegram, news website says

Sept 11 - A Latvian man suspected of an attempted arson attack on a drone factory in Slovakia told investigators he was hired through the Telegram messaging app and had contact with several people instructing him, including one who spoke Russian, a Slovak news website reported.

Plant operator Skyeton, a company founded in Ukraine which says it produces drones for civilian and military use in Ukraine and other countries, has suggested Russia was behind the attempt last month.

The Russian embassy in Slovakia denied any Russian role when asked about the attempt.

A little-known group calling itself "Global Citizens Against War 1984" claimed responsibility for the attempt and called for the release of the two initially detained in Slovakia whom it called its activists. The Slovak Interior Ministry has declined to comment on the claim.

The news website www.dennikn.sk, citing documents released by a Slovak court, said the man told investigators he was recruited by unknown persons through Telegram to commit an arson attack at a location that was only given to him at the last moment.

Citing court rulings on imposing custody on the Latvian man and another suspect, the website reported that the man was given coordinates of the Skyeton plant near the eastern city of Presov a day before the planned attack.

Reuters could not verify the report nor the man's statements.

A spokesperson for the court in Presov on Friday did not confirm the content of the court custody decisions, which the news website said were provided under a freedom of information request.

Police arrested the Latvian man near the Slovak factory and also arrested a Ukrainian man who was supposed to drive him to Poland afterward, the website said.

Another Latvian was arrested in Germany, and another Ukrainian was detained later in Slovakia in relation to the plan, prosecutors have said.

Concerns over sabotage attacks on production sites and other installations in western Europe related to the war in Ukraine have risen sharply in the past months, with governments frequently pointing the finger at Russia. Russia has denied involvement in sabotage attacks.

Germany blamed a drone attack in August at Leipzig/Halle airport on Moscow as part of hybrid warfare meant to intimidate and divide countries that have supported Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. Russia denies involvement. REUTERS