Media: German investigators found DNA traces at the site where a drone with explosives was found near a Ukrainian An-124 plane

German investigators have found DNA traces at Leipzig Airport, where a drone with explosives was found near a Ukrainian An-124 aircraft. These traces match an older sample from 2024 found at the scene of an arson attack at a DHL logistics center in Leipzig.

This is reported by Die Zeit and Bild, citing sources.

German investigators currently have no evidence that the two cases are linked, and the DNA traces have not yet been linked to a specific person.

On July 20, 2024, an air cargo package caught fire at the DHL logistics center in Leipzig. Due to the delay of the plane, it exploded on the ground — if it had happened in the air, the fire could have led to a plane crash. Security officials believe that the package was planted on behalf of Russia. Similar packages transported by logistics companies DHL and DPD have also exploded in the UK and Poland.

In March 2026, the Lithuanian Prosecutorʼs Office indicted five people in this case.

What happened at Leipzig Airport?

On the night of August 5, a drone with a detonator and explosives was found near a Ukrainian plane at Leipzig Airport. After that, German media wrote that the An-124 could have been transporting ammunition for Ukraine.

On August 7, the German Interior Ministry denied this. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reported that no one was injured and the Antonov aircraft were not damaged.

On August 10, media reported that a drone carrying explosives crashed into a Ukrainian plane but failed to detonate for unknown reasons. The explosives likely became detached during the impact and ended up nearby. The drone itself was accidentally discovered only about four hours later.

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