UK police point to Russian intelligence in Europe-wide cargo fires

LONDON

UK police on Friday said an international investigation has identified suspected Russian military intelligence involvement in a series of fires affecting air freight cargo across Europe since 2024.

Detectives from Lithuania, Poland, the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands collaborated through Eurojust—the European Union’s criminal justice agency—to share investigative material related to multiple incidents, the London police said in a statement.

Counter Terrorism Policing London became involved after a package ignited at a depot in Minworth, Birmingham, on July 22, 2024. Detectives took primacy of the investigation and linked it to other cargo fires across Europe.

A 38-year-old Romanian man was arrested on March 19, 2025, on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service under Section 3 of the National Security Act 2023. He was later released but remains under investigation.

Enquiries so far have led detectives to believe Russian military intelligence was involved, the police said.

Investigators continue to work closely with the Crown Prosecution Service, European partners, and the affected freight carrier.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans, senior national coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, praised the international collaboration, saying: “The work of our European counterparts has been truly remarkable and demonstrates the critical need for us to work across borders, as well as the expertise of our colleagues overseas. The strength of cooperation in this case has led us to collectively identify what we believe to be Russian military intelligence involvement in a series of incidents across Europe.”

“We have been clear and open about the increasing levels of demand we’re seeing relating to the activity of foreign states here in the UK," she noted.