Confession in the trial of construction foam attacks on cars

In the trial surrounding construction foam attacks on hundreds of vehicles in four federal states, the defendants made a full confession.

They deeply regretted the actions and had the two 18- and 22-year-old men and the 21-year-old woman read out by their lawyers at the start of the trial at the Ulm regional court.

The three defendants have to answer for common damage to property. So far they have denied the allegations or exercised their right to refuse to testify.

In December 2024, the group is said to have deliberately damaged numerous cars in Blaubeuren, Langenau, Ulm (Baden-Württemberg), Neu-Ulm (Bavaria), Schönefeld (Brandenburg) and Berlin. The defendants are accused of filling construction foam into the exhaust pipes of the vehicles. They should also put stickers on their cars that say “BE GREEN!” and a picture of the then Green Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck.

Who are the masterminds of the sabotage?

From the investigators' point of view, behind the supposedly simple damage to property is a clumsy attempt to influence the 2025 federal election - to the detriment of the Greens. According to the public prosecutor's office, a client specifically incited the four to take part in the actions in order to influence the voting behavior of the population in Germany. In return, they were promised 100 euros for each damaged car.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has long been warning about attempts by Russian secret services to recruit “throwaway agents” for espionage and sabotage in Germany. Their actions are seen by the security authorities as part of the hybrid threat that Germany has been exposed to, especially since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. “Disposable agents” are not official secret service employees - they are used for sabotage, propaganda or spying.

According to previous information from the public prosecutor's office, a suspect reported that the crimes were ordered by a Serbian national from Russia. However, the judge made it clear at the start of the negotiation that alleged clients from home or abroad were expressly not the subject of the negotiation. The public prosecutor's investigations did not produce any results and were discontinued. The 18-year-old said through his lawyer that he did not know a client.