The head of the company “Donaustahl,” Stefan Thumann, stated in a joint interview with broadcaster RTL and the magazine “Stern” that German officials warned him about Russian intelligence plans as early as the end of 2025.
S. Thumann, whose company produces attack and reconnaissance drones and military drone software, indicated that since then he has effectively been living underground.
“I am fighting a duel with Russian military intelligence for my life,” he said.
“I constantly change locations, I am guarded by personal bodyguards around the clock, my personal life has disappeared,” added S. Thumann.
Prosecutors announced in March the arrest of two so-called “one-time agents” – often recruited for relatively small sums and poorly trained individuals – who are suspected of spying on the company’s head in preparation for an assassination attempt.
However, the threat to him may not have passed, according to reports. RTL quoted a German legislator who stated that the plans were quite advanced and involved the use of a nerve-paralyzing substance.
The 39-year-old businessman said that upon learning about the conspiracy, he wrote a will and filled out an organ donor card.
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“These are things that at my age you usually don’t think about too much,” he said.
He sleeps next to his computer and starts working as soon as he wakes up to avoid thoughts about his personal situation.
The war in Ukraine has become his “very personal war,” added S. Thumann.
“Donaustahl” is one of many German defense technology startups that have emerged in developing high-tech drones, which are becoming increasingly important in the war in Ukraine.
As reported by the television channel CNN, in 2024 the US thwarted a Russian plan to kill the head of the German defense industry giant “Rheinmetall,” Armin Papperger.
“Rheinmetall” is the largest German defense group and an important supplier of ammunition and weapons to Ukraine.
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