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Oleg Levushkin, a Russian motorcyclist allegedly linked to a senior Russian military intelligence official, is suspected of planning an attempted sabotage attack at Germany’s Leipzig-Halle airport, according to a joint investigation by “The Telegraph” and “Welt am Sonntag”.
The investigation said a drone carrying a tin packed with explosives struck the wing of a Ukrainian airliner at the airport in September. The incident could have caused an explosion and severe structural damage, the report said.
Classified intelligence documents from Germany, Lithuania and Poland, together with interviews with senior Western intelligence officials, reportedly indicate that Levushkin travelled to Germany with a “disposable agent” to carry out the operation. German investigators suspect he planned the attack and later instructed Belarusian proxy agent Andrei Karshakou to execute it.
Reported links to other plots
Evidence reviewed by the newspapers reportedly showed similarities between the Leipzig incident and a separate foiled Russian sabotage plot involving drones and explosives at locations in Poland, Lithuania and Germany. The device recovered in Leipzig was said to closely resemble those used in other alleged Russian sabotage operations across Europe.
Levushkin, who holds a Russian passport and has an interest in motorcycles, has reportedly been in contact for years with Denis Smolyaninov, described as an alleged chief planner of Russian bomb attacks across Europe. The UK Foreign Office sanctioned Smolyaninov last year.
A Lithuanian intelligence report from December 2025, reviewed by “The Telegraph”, said Smolyaninov led the Ukraine department at Russia’s military intelligence service, the GRU, and specialised in psychological operations. It also associated him with covert sabotage campaigns in Europe using “Telegram”.
German officials warn of broader activity
Information provided to German newspaper “Süddeutsche Zeitung” by the Dossier Centre said Levushkin and Smolyaninov met in 2007, after Smolyaninov mediated a financial dispute involving Levushkin’s business.
The Leipzig incident has also been linked to GRU unit 29155, which German intelligence officials reportedly consider a key force behind operations ordered by the Kremlin. Lithuanian intelligence files reportedly connected the incident to a wider network of alleged sabotage plots across Europe, attributed by investigators to a hard-line GRU unit.
German security authorities believe Russia is seeking to make Europeans view support for Ukraine as risky, potentially influencing public debate and backing for Kyiv. A senior German intelligence official described Germany as increasingly becoming an “operational theatre” for Russian intelligence services, adding: “What used to be isolated cases, we are now seeing on a broad scale.”
