Lithuanian courier charged over Russian-linked parcel bomb plot
Mar 11th 2026
Aleksandr Suranovas, who says he was hired to post ordinary parcels, has been charged after items he carried from Vilnius were found to contain sophisticated incendiary devices. Investigators say the operation was run remotely from Russia and led to dozens of arrests across Lithuania and Poland.
- Aleksandr Suranovas has been charged with terrorism in Lithuania and says he did not know the parcels contained explosives.
- Parcels shipped from Vilnius to the UK and Poland contained nitromethane-filled tubes and hidden timers concealed in cosmetics and massage cushions.
- Three devices ignited in July 2024 at Leipzig airport, near Warsaw, and in Birmingham, causing damage but no casualties.
- Investigators in Lithuania and Poland, with UK counter-terror support, say the operation was coordinated remotely from Russia and linked to the GRU, a claim Moscow denies.
- Authorities have arrested 22 suspects and recovered more explosives and drone parts buried at a cemetery.
- Telegram handlers and criminal networks were used to recruit untrained proxies to carry out and send the parcels, prompting a high-level US warning to Russia.