Prosecutors in Lithuania said on Wednesday that it disrupted a Russian-led plot to use mail parcels for bomb attacks across Europe.

Several suspects with ties to Russian military intelligence were involved in the plot, a Lithuanian general prosecutor and criminal police said. 

According to Lithuanian National Television (LNT), among the suspects charged are nationals of Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Ukraine.

Homemade incendiary devices were to be concealed in massage cushions and cosmetic tubes. The suspects packed the parcels with thermite, a highly flammable substance used for industrial and military purposes.

Several of the suspects were reportedly tied to a foiled May 9, 2024, arson attempt at an IKEA store in Vilnius, LNT said.

What were the targets?

The parcels involved shipments through European carriers DHL and DPD.

LNT reported that two parcels were shipped by air toward the UK and two by truck toward Poland. 

Additionally, one device being carried by DHL exploded July 20 at Leipzig Airport in Germany, while another detonated the next day in a DPD truck in Poland.

A a third parcel exploded July 22 at a DHL warehouse in Birmingham, England, while a fourth did not ignite due to a technical malfunction.

Who is investigating?

The case is currently being handled by the EU Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (Eurojust).

According to LNT, law enforcement and intelligence agencies from Lithuania, Poland, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Latvia, Estonia, the United States, and Canada, are all part of the investigative team.

Prosecutors said the suspects were recruited via the Telegram messaging platform and were offered payment in cryptocurrency.

Authorities carried out searches in Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, and Estonia, where other explosives and detonators hidden in canned food containers were found, LNT reported.

More than six kilograms of explosives were found and authorities believe they were intended for future attacks.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn