Russian intelligence services tried to kill the head of a German drone manufacturer, - Die Zeit

Russian intelligence services likely planned an assassination attempt on the head of the German unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturer Donaustahl. The plot was foiled before it could be carried out.

According to the publication, the target of the Russian intelligence services was the head of the German company Donaustahl, Stefan Tumann. Thanks to information received from a foreign intelligence service, German security services were able to prevent the attempt. This spring, law enforcement arrested two suspects — Ukrainian citizen Serhiy N. in Spain and Romanian citizen Alla S. in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The investigation found that from December 2025 to March 2026 they were surveilling Tumann, photographing his home and Donaustahl headquarters, and gathering information about him online. German security services received a warning about a threat to the company head’s life at the end of 2025. At that time Serhiy N. was detained, but due to lack of time authorities did not have a chance to analyze the information from his mobile phones and released him. Subsequent data analysis, according to Die Zeit, showed his possible contacts with a Russian intelligence service. By then the man had already left Germany and traveled to Spain with his family. Meanwhile, Alla S., the investigation alleges, continued surveillance of Tumann. In March 2026 both suspects were arrested during a coordinated operation. The Attorney General of Germany accused the detainees of acting for the benefit of a foreign intelligence service. Their lawyers declined to comment on the case. Stefan Tumann is currently under heightened security. In a LinkedIn post he said that "for certain reasons" he will temporarily not participate in exhibitions, but promised to return to work in other formats soon.

Recall that in June Ukrainian law enforcement foiled an assassination attempt on one of the leaders of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, who, according to sources of RBC-Ukraine, was Andriy Yusov. According to the investigation’s version, Russian intelligence services promised the perpetrator 100 thousand dollars for the killing and planned to carry out the attack using an FPV drone, but the suspect was detained while the crime was still in the preparation stage.