WARSAW, April 5 (Reuters) - Fake cosmetics, massage pillows and sex toys. Crude homemade explosives. A Russian known as Warrior. A code word: Mary.
These are among the key elements of a suspected Russian-run sabotage plot that led to three parcels being detonatedat courier depots in Britain, Germany and Poland last summer, a person with knowledge of the Polish investigation told Reuters.
The pillows, packed into the parcels with the cosmetics and sex toys, contained hidden homemade incendiary devices made of a cocktail of chemicals including highly reactive magnesium, according to the person familiar with the case who provided the most granular account yet of the alleged plot.
The chemicals were ignited by pre-timed detonators adapted from cheap Chinese electronic gadgets used to track items like lost keys, with the effect enhanced by the tubes of what looked like cosmetics but in fact contained a gel made of flammable compounds including nitromethane, according to the source.
“The proceedings in this case concern criminal activities inspired by Russia’s GRU,” this person said, referring to Moscow’s foreign military intelligence agency.
Reuters is reporting the details of the investigation for the first time, drawing on the account provided by the source close to the Polish case as well as interviews with more than a dozen European security officials. The findings provide a rare insight into how sabotage campaigns play out on the ground.