The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has thwarted a Russian attempt to destroy a production facility at a defense industry enterprise in Lviv, detaining an alleged Russian agent who was preparing to carry out the sabotage.
The SSU announced the operation, according to Ukrinform.
The suspect is a local resident. Investigators found that, acting on instructions from a Russian handler, he secured a job at the defense enterprise as a general laborer. He later received step-by-step instructions from a Russian intelligence operative on how to set fire to and destroy sections of the facility housing production equipment.
The SSU arrested the suspect after he attempted to start a fire in one of the plant's workshops.
According to investigators, the suspect intended to disguise the sabotage as an electrical short circuit in production equipment during normal operations. The resulting fire was expected to trigger explosions that would appear to have been caused by a technical malfunction.
