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# Turkish Crime Gang Linked to Suspected Russian Starlink Sabotage in Poland
- URL: https://www.adriadefense.com/turkish-crime-gang-linked-to-suspected-russian-starlink-sabotage-in-poland/
- Published: 2026-10-18T11:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-18T10:59:59.000Z
- Description: German investigations suggest a Turkish organized crime network may have carried out the Starlink sabotage in Poland on behalf of Russian intelligence.
- Author: AdriaDefense Desk
- Tags: Poland, Turkiye, Starlink, Russia, Sabotage, Intelligence

**German investigations have identified possible links between a Turkish organized crime network and the September attack on a Starlink ground station in Poland, raising questions about Russia's alleged use of criminal groups for intelligence-directed sabotage in Europe.**

A Turkish organized crime group known as Daltonlar may have been involved in the September 23 arson attack on a Starlink satellite communications ground station in Poland, potentially acting on instructions from Russian intelligence services, according to investigations published by German media on October 16.

Reporting by *Der Spiegel*, citing independent sources in several countries, and separate investigations by ARD's Berlin bureau and STRG\_F have connected two Turkish nationals arrested in Germany to the criminal network.

The suspects, identified by German media as 34-year-old Müslüm T. and 38-year-old Ümit E., were detained on October 12 in Nürtingen, Baden-Württemberg, under European arrest warrants issued by Poland.

Investigators suspect the men of involvement in setting fire to infrastructure at the Starlink ground station in Wola Krobowska, south of Warsaw.

## A Criminal Network With Alleged Russian Connections

Daltonlar, also known as the Daltons, originated in Istanbul and has expanded its activities into Germany and other European countries. The group has been associated with extortion, illegal arms trafficking and contract killings.

According to *Der Spiegel*, the two detained men may be members of the organization or have acted on instructions from individuals connected to it.

The group's alleged leader, Beratcan Gökdemir, known as Can Dalton, was detained in Russia in 2024\. Despite an extradition request from Türkiye, German security sources cited by the magazine believe Russian authorities subsequently provided him with protection. His current whereabouts have not been independently established.

These reported connections have raised suspicions that Russian intelligence services could have used the criminal network to organize the Starlink attack. However, no publicly disclosed evidence conclusively establishes that the group received orders from Moscow.

## Germany Warns of Organized Crime in Russian Sabotage Operations

The emerging allegations are consistent with warnings issued by German counterintelligence officials about the potential use of organized criminal networks in foreign intelligence operations.

Sinan Selen, president of Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), warned on October 12 that Russian intelligence services were increasingly combining different operational methods and actors, including organized crime structures.

German security authorities have described the use of criminal organizations to carry out paid operations as a form of *crime as a service*.

If investigators establish that Daltonlar participated in the Starlink attack on behalf of Russian intelligence, the case could provide evidence of a more structured approach to sabotage than the recruitment of individual low-level operatives.

Polish authorities have already attributed the suspected sabotage operation to Russian intelligence services. The fire damaged electrical infrastructure and backup power equipment at the ground station, which supports satellite internet connectivity in the region, including communications relevant to Ukraine.

The German arrests resulted from cooperation between Polish and German authorities. Extradition proceedings concerning the two principal suspects remain pending.

The alleged involvement of Daltonlar is still under investigation, and no court has established responsibility for the attack or confirmed a Russian intelligence connection.