Polish appeals court raises sentence to five and a half years for Russian spy who scouted Rzeszów airport

Poland's Court of Appeal in Lublin on 8 October 2026 raised the prison term of a former Polish soldier convicted of spying for Russian military intelligence from three and a half to five and a half years, Notes from Poland reported. The defendant, identified as Paweł K., age 51, had been arrested on 18 April 2024 by the Internal Security Agency (ABW) following a joint Polish-Ukrainian investigation. Prosecutors established that he had gathered and transmitted security information about Rzeszów-Jasionka airport in southeastern Poland between December 2022 and March 2024, and that the data 'could have been used in the context of planning a possible assassination attempt' on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The appeals court's decision to add two years to the original district-court sentence underscores the severity with which Polish courts are treating Russian intelligence activity on NATO territory.

What Paweł K. did and how he was caught

Between December 2022 and March 2024, Paweł K. communicated with Russian military intelligence operatives via email and encrypted messaging applications, transmitting observations about security arrangements at Rzeszów-Jasionka airport. Al Jazeera reported at the time of his April 2024 arrest that he had been tasked with 'gathering and transmitting security details' about the airport, which is used by US troops and has frequently served as a transit point for Zelensky during international travel. Polish prosecutors, who formally charged him in May 2025, stated he 'was ready to act on behalf of the military intelligence services of the Russian Federation', with a maximum sentence of eight years under Polish law.

During the investigation, Paweł K. also expressed willingness to join Russian sabotage units, including Wagner Group personnel and GRU Unit 29155. Notes from Poland reported that the latter connection strengthened the prosecution's case that his airport reconnaissance had an operational rather than merely informational purpose. He was charged with espionage and illegal ammunition possession, convicted by the District Court in Zamość in January 2026, and sentenced to three and a half years. The prosecution appealed, arguing the sentence did not reflect the gravity of the offence given the evidence of his readiness to work with units associated with lethal operations.

Why Rzeszów-Jasionka was the target

Rzeszów-Jasionka airport, roughly 80 kilometres from the Ukrainian border, has functioned since February 2022 as the principal western staging point for NATO military equipment and humanitarian supplies entering Ukraine. Al Jazeera noted in its 2024 arrest report that the airport serves as 'a major hub for goods and people being transported in and out of Ukraine' and is the base for a significant contingent of American military personnel. Its role makes the facility's security arrangements a high-value collection target for Russian services seeking to track senior Ukrainian and NATO officials in transit.

The prosecution framed Paweł K.'s activity as preparation for a possible assassination rather than routine espionage because of the nature of the data collected — security perimeter details, access points, patrol schedules — and his stated willingness to act with Russian units. The defence countered that the information was publicly available and that Paweł K. had been attempting to deceive his Russian handlers. The Court of Appeal in Lublin found that even if individual data points were obtainable through open sources, the systematic mapping of security arrangements at a NATO logistics hub constituted substantive intelligence assistance.

Legal outcome and what it establishes

The five-and-a-half-year sentence handed down on 8 October 2026 sits between the district court's three-and-a-half-year ruling and the eight-year maximum under Article 130 of Poland's Penal Code. The court's reasoning, as reported by Notes from Poland, treated the airport reconnaissance as a materially useful contribution to Russian intelligence regardless of whether each individual data point was publicly known, because the operational value lay in the consolidated security profile rather than any single disclosure.

Poland's ABW has reported the arrest of numerous individuals linked to Russian intelligence since 2022, operating across roles including sabotage, propaganda and the surveillance of aid logistics. The Paweł K. case adds a legally concluded precedent in which a former soldier with familiarity with a critical transit facility was recruited, tasked and paid by Russian military intelligence. For NATO counterintelligence partners, the documented use of GRU Unit 29155 as the referenced receiving organisation represents a significant data point, since that unit has been named in multiple European judicial proceedings as responsible for assassination attempts and destabilisation operations on the continent. No cassation appeal before Poland's Supreme Court had been announced as of 8 October 2026.

Sources

• Notes from Poland — Polish man suspected of helping Russian plot to assassinate Zelensky sentenced to 5.5 years (8 October 2026)
• Al Jazeera — Poland arrests man over suspected plan to kill Ukraine's Zelenskyy (18 April 2024)
• Ukrayinska Pravda — Polish prosecutors charge man who planned to help in Zelenskyy assassination attempt (20 May 2025)
• Euractiv — Poland detains man suspected of spying for Russia at Rzeszów logistics hub (April 2024)
• Kyiv Post — Would-Be Russian Spy Jailed in Poland Over Alleged Plot Against Zelensky (February 2026)
• Polish Radio English — Polish man convicted for offering to spy for Russia (February 2026)