Former Warsaw City Council Employee Charged with Espionage for Russia

Indictment Filed Against Former Warsaw Official

Polish authorities have announced the formal indictment of Tomasz L., a former employee of the Warsaw city council's civil registry, on charges of espionage and abuse of public power. The charges, filed with the Warsaw District Court on September 11, 2025, allege that Tomasz L. provided Russian intelligence services with sensitive data to facilitate the creation of false identities for their agents. The announcement was made on Thursday, October 9, 2025.

Allegations of Providing Fake Identities

According to the indictment, Tomasz L. is accused of collaborating with Russian intelligence from 2017 until his detention on March 17, 2022. While working in the archival department of the Warsaw municipality's civil registry, he allegedly copied official documents, including civil records of both Polish and foreign citizens, correspondence with diplomatic missions, official templates, and internal instructions. These materials were reportedly transferred onto personal devices and photographed with his phone.

Prosecutors state that the data obtained by Tomasz L. was crucial for foreign intelligence services to 'prepare legalisation documentation to build the identities of so-called illegals.' He is believed to have transmitted this information to a designated Russian intelligence officer using covert radio communication, having received prior training from Russian secret services in this area. The recipient was identified as an official at the Russian Embassy, who was subsequently expelled from Poland in March 2022.

Legal Proceedings and Broader Context

Tomasz L. was detained by the Polish Internal Security Agency (ABW) in March 2022. His arrest and the information gathered reportedly contributed to the expulsion of 45 Russian diplomats from Poland in the same month. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His pre-trial detention has been repeatedly extended, most recently by the Warsaw Court of Appeal until March 25, 2026.

The former official faces a potential sentence of up to 15 years in prison for espionage and up to 3 years for abuse of authority. This case is part of a broader pattern, as Polish authorities have accused dozens of individuals of espionage or sabotage on behalf of Moscow since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.