Story highlights
Polish authorities break up a plot to bomb Parliament
The probe began with a look at a Norwegian terror suspect's Polish contacts
Two suspects have been arrested
Authorities say they recovered guns, ammunition, and materials to make a 4-ton bomb
Polish authorities said Tuesday they’ve broken up a plot to bomb Parliament, arresting two people and recovering enough materials to make a 4-ton bomb.
The investigation began with an analysis of the Internet shopping list of convicted Norwegian extremist Anders Breivik.
The primary suspect is a university lecturer with expertise in explosives who told police he wanted to bomb Parliament with the president, prime minister and other officials in attendance, according to Piotr Kosmaty, the spokesman for the appellate prosecutor’s office in Krakow.
Nationalist and anti-Semitic interests motivated the 45-year-old chemist, who was not part of any particular party or movement, Kosmaty said. Police arrested the man November 9. His identity was not released.
During the arrest, police found guns, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, body armor and materials that could be used to make a bomb, including fuses, detonators and other materials, according to Lt. Col. Maciej Karczyński, a spokesman for the Internal Security Service.
The second suspect, arrested Tuesday, is believed to be a loose confederate of the university lecturer, Kosmaty said. He had enough material to quickly assemble a 4-ton bomb, Kosmaty said. Police did not release that man’s identity either.
Police identified another suspect but said that person poses no danger, Kosmaty added. It was not immediately clear if that suspect had been arrested.
Read more: Norway killer Anders Breivik ruled sane, given 21-year prison term
The plot first came to light with an investigation into Breivik’s contacts abroad, the Polish prime minister’s office said Tuesday.
Breivik, a right-wing extremist, exploded a fertilizer bomb outside the Norwegian prime minister’s office on July 22, 2011, killing eight people. He then headed to a Labour Party youth camp where he killed 69 more people. He was convicted in June and sentenced in August to 21 years in prison.
According to the Polish prime minister’s office, Breivik bought some explosive components from Polish sources via the Internet, and an examination of those contacts led police to start their investigation.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk congratulated police on the investigation, and said the plot should be a wake-up call for the country.
“Let this be a signal to all of us that we should be wise from harm, and renounce the language of hatred and violence in the public debate,” he said.
CNN’s Sebastien Delame and Antonia Mortensen contributed to this report.