Suspects Planned Arson Attack on Skyeton's Slovak Drone Facility, Officials Confirm
Details Emerge on Planned Attack and Investigation
By Jan Lopatka
Arson Plot Targeted Skyeton's Facility
Aug 27 (Reuters) - An arson attack planned by three suspects in eastern Slovakia targeted the drone maker Skyeton, the Slovak prosecution said on Thursday.
The company produces intelligence gathering and targeting drones and has a facility in eastern Slovakia, according to its website.
"The attack was supposed to aim at the Skyeton company's factory," a spokesman for the regional prosecution office in the eastern city of Presov said in an email, confirming an earlier report by Slovak news website dennikn.sk.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Suspects and Arrests
International Involvement
A German prosecutor told Reuters that a 26-year-old Latvian had been detained in Hamburg in relation to the case and extradition proceedings were under way.
Other Suspects in Slovakia
Two other suspects, detained in Slovakia, were a Latvian and a Ukrainian, the Slovak prosecution said a day earlier.
Evidence and Motives
Police Findings
Slovak police said that during a raid they had found an incendiary mixture and a plan for an attack on the drone facility. They added that the suspects acted on commission, but did not name any party suspected of ordering the attack.
Possible Russian Connection
Dennikn.sk quoted Skyeton as saying that it had a sister operation in Ukraine and pointed to Russia being behind the attack.
"The recent attack on our facility in Slovakia is another proof that Ukrainian defence industry producers became a real thorn in Russians' side and that we are on the right path," the news website quoted the company as saying.
The Russian embassy in Bratislava did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Skyeton's Operations and Export Licenses
Production for Western and Ukrainian Markets
Skyeton said that production at the Slovak site was for Western markets while its facility in Ukraine produced for the Ukrainian army, dennikn.sk reported.
Export Restrictions
The Slovak site had no licences to export to the east, dennikn.sk quoted Slovak Defence Minister Robert Kalinak as saying.
Legal Proceedings
Custody Decision
The court in Presov ruled on Thursday that the two suspects detained in Slovakia will be held in custody pending investigation, Slovak television TA3 reported.
Reporting Credits
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka in Prague; Additional reporting by Friederike Heine in Berlin; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
