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Metro
18 hours ago
- Metro
Russia-linked DHL fire in Birmingham left Amazon container ‘100% destroyed
The Russia-linked fire at a DHL depot left a pallet of Amazon deliveries '100% destroyed' after staff managed to move it out of the building, according to newly released documents. The blaze was discovered 'immediately' after the packed metal container brought in by air caught alight on July 22 last year at the warehouse in Minworth, a suburb of Birmingham. Fresh details about the incident have been released today after the information commissioner ordered West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS) to disclose a time log and incident report. The redacted documents back up reports that the blaze could have had serious consequences if it had broken out on an airliner. In November, a Polish intelligence chief said that the suspected Russian arson attack was a test run for future sabotage targeting the US. Pawel Szota, speaking after Poland arrested four people alleged to have been involved, added that if the devices had exploded in the air, it would have been a major escalation against the West. The UK's investigation into the incident, which came just days after another air freight package caught fire at a DHL facility in Germany, is being undertaken by Metropolitan Police counter-terrorism officers. A 38-year-old Romanian man was arrested by the UK investigation team in March on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service after flying into Stansted Airport. He was taken to a London police station and was due to be released on bail last month. Firefighters responded after the alarm was raised at 03:41 by a person at the Prologis Park Midpoint site, which handles parcels for delivery, who reported a '6ft fire' in a metal storage pallet. The caller said it had been placed outside the building and was 'unsure' of what it contained, according to the time-stamped record. The log states that the 5ft by 4ft pallet containing Amazon delivery parcels had 'initially set on fire inside the DHL building.' The document continues: 'However DHL staff removed this to outside car park. 100% of items on pallet destroyed by fire.' A fire crew from Erdington used a hose reel and liaised with DHL staff as they tackled the blaze, with the building having been evacuated. The time between ignition and discovery is recorded as 'immediately', with the cause or motive marked as 'accidental' based on the information available at the time. A slight delay to the response was caused by the crew of four being sent to the wrong location, according to the incident report. There have not been any reports of injuries or significant damage caused by the blaze, which occupied the firefighters for just over an hour. Cross-referenced with pictures obtained by the Wall Street Journal and The Guardian of the incident, the information suggests that a worker in a forklift acted swiftly in moving the burning container out of harm's way. A Russian covert operation was suspected of sending the incendiary devices into the UK and Germany, according to Western security officials who spoke to the American title. The fire service had tried to prevent the logs being released under the Freedom of Information Act, initially releasing only a one-line statement from a spreadsheet categorising the incident as an accident. The authority said: 'We cannot provide the incident log or a report directly as these are only available to the owner of the property.' Asked for a fuller picture, the authority then cited personal information and also made a brief reference to national security and health and safety, saying that exemptions for the latter reasons 'may' apply. After the Metro complained to the Information Commissioner's Office, the watchdog ruled in a 13-page decision that the information should be released in redacted form. The commissioner found the 'limited arguments' made by the fire service for a national security exemption unconvincing, writing: 'The level of detail within the incident log and incident report, in relation to this specific event, is limited and the commissioner finds the arguments to be generic rather than specific to this particular case.' The commissioner also rejected the fire service's argument that the release of vehicle fleet information or response procedures could endanger personnel in future, finding that these could be redacted and were in any case only briefly referenced. Addressing the authority's attempt to block the disclosure on the grounds that the information had been 'collected in confidence', the watchdog said: 'WMFS has not sufficiently demonstrated that there is any obligation of confidence or that there would be any detriment to consider.' Releasing the information in redacted form, the fire service said that personal information and national security exemptions had been applied. The response states: 'The service has applied Section 38 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to withhold the release of vehicle call signs and other operational identifiers. 'Disclosure of such information could compromise operational effectiveness by revealing details critical to firefighting duties. 'It may also increase the risk of impersonation of emergency personnel or facilitate malicious interference with emergency response activities. More Trending 'This poses a significant threat to public safety and the safety of our personnel. There is a compelling public interest in safeguarding critical national infrastructure and maintaining national security.' A DHL spokesperson told Metro: 'This relates to an ongoing investigation, so we are unable to provide any comment on these developments. 'DHL continues to work closely with the respective authorities to support and enforce industry-wide safety and security directives.' Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact MORE: Intelligence expert's ominous warning over West's shadow war with Russia MORE: Stark warning to the world as Putin's dark arts seep past Nato's border MORE: Putin's sinister game plan is to 'rot and degrade' his way to victory
Daily Mail
24-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Russian spy chief 'masterminded parcel bomb attack on US-bound flights that sparked fire at Birmingham DHL depot'
A Russian spy chief has been identified as one of the suspected masterminds behind a parcel-bomb attack on US-bound flights which sparked a fire at a DHL depot in Brimingham. Last year, officials feared that Russia was attempting to plant bombs on passenger planes flying to the US and Canada. It came after electronic massagers began to explode in warehouses across Europe. Two incendiary devices were shipped via DHL logistic centres in Birmingham and Leipzig in Germany, resulting in fires. It is now believed a Russian military intelligence officer may have been the mastermind behind a sabotage plot, The Times reported. Four people were arrested in connection with the blaze in Birmingham and charged with participating in sabotage or terrorist operations on behalf of a foreign intelligence agency. No injuries were reported, with the incident dealt with by staff and the local fire brigade, but investigators believe there could have been far more serious consequences had the devices ignited while in flight. Delay of the plane was referenced as fortunate, with experts warning there could have been a very different outcome had it taken off on time. The terrifying episode took place at the DHL centre in Birmingham on the ground of the depot. A similar fire then broke out at an airport in Warsaw in the following days. At the time, the head of Poland's foreign intelligence agency, Pawel Szota, blamed Russia, although the prosecutor's office statement did not name a foreign government suspected of directing the operations. The devices were reportedly hidden in massage cushions in the parcels alongside cosmetics and sex toys, which did not raise suspicions during pre-flight security checks, according to investigations by German broadcasters WDR and NDR and the Süddeutsche Zeitung. European officials previously warned that mass casualties were avoided purely 'by accident' as the bombs did not go off in mid-air. They suspected that the packages were intended to expose vulnerabilities in western delivery channels to the US. Reports had previously linked the GRU, Russia's intelligence agency, to the plot. GRU officer Colonel Denis Smolyaninov is one of the men believed to have been behind the sabotage operation. He is believed to have been one of ten people involved in the attack, including low-level proxies that sent the devices through air freight hubs. According to documents obtained by Dossier Center, the investigative unit funded by Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Colonel Smolyaninov was plotting to disrupt western aviation since 2014. The documents, seen by German reporters show that Russian agents had plotted ways to obstruct radio communication between pilots and ground personnel. If successful, pilots and airport staff would not be able to hear each other, which could cause planes to be misdirected. In August 2024, two parcels were sent from Warsaw to the US and Canada, containing clothes, trainers and tracking devices in what are believed to have been dry runs. Several people, including Ukrainians and Lithuanians, have been detained regarding the plot. Another suspected plotter identified by German media is a Russian named as Aleksandr B, who was arrested in Bosnia-Herzegovina last year suspected of training Moldovans for protests in their home country. He was extradited to Poland in February on charges of 'co-ordinating acts of sabotage'. However, the sabotage series appears to have stopped last year. According to German media, the sabotage series has stopped after US officials made it clear to Russia that they knew who was behind it and that no further escalation would be tolerated. The Russian embassy in Berlin told the German reporters that accusations of the sabotage plot were 'paranoia' and 'conspiracy theories'.
