German drone start-up CEO in hiding over alleged Russian plot

The head of a German defence start-up supplying strike drones to Ukraine has been living in hiding for months due to an alleged Russian assassination plot.

Stefan Thumann, the head of Donaustahl, said in a joint interview with the television channel RTL and Stern magazine that German authorities warned him in late 2025 about a plot by Russian intelligence.

The CEO of the company, which produces strike and reconnaissance drones as well as military drone software, said he has effectively been living underground since then.

Thumann said:

“I am locked in a duel for my life with the Russian military intelligence service. I am constantly moving, living under 24-hour personal security; my private life is now gone.”

Prosecutors announced in March the arrest of two “disposable agents”—individuals typically hired for relatively low pay and given minimal training—who had allegedly surveilled the CEO in preparation for the assassination attempt.

However, according to reports, the danger to the CEO may not yet be over. RTL cited a German lawmaker who stated that the plans targeting him were at a very advanced stage and involved the use of a nerve agent.

The 39-year-old CEO said that following the “shock” of learning about the plot, he wrote his will and filled out an organ donor card.

“Things you would not normally think about at my age,” Thumann said.

To avoid dwelling on his personal situation, he sleeps next to his computer and starts working as soon as he wakes up.

He added that the war in Ukraine has become “a completely personal war” for him.

Donaustahl is among the defence technology start-ups in Germany that have come to prominence by developing high-tech drones, which are playing an increasingly central role in the Ukrainian conflict.

According to a CNN report, in 2024 the US foiled a Russian plot aimed at assassinating Armin Papperger, the CEO of German defence giant Rheinmetall.

Rheinmetall is Germany’s largest defence group and one of the principal suppliers of ammunition and weapons to Ukraine.