Final hours! Save up to 55% OFF InvestingProCLAIM SALE

Bulgarians accused of being Russian spies appear in UK court

Published 26/09/2023, 11:22
USD/GBP
-

By Michael Holden

LONDON (Reuters) -Five Bulgarian nationals accused of being part of a Russian spying network in Britain, tasked with carrying out surveillance and obtaining information about targets, appeared by videolink in a London court on Tuesday.

The three men and two women are accused of conspiring "to collect information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to an enemy for a purpose prejudicial to the safety and interest of the state" between Aug. 30, 2020 and Feb. 8, 2023.

Orlin Roussev, 45, Bizer Dzhambazov, 41, Katrin Ivanova, 31, Ivan Stoyanov, 31, and Vanya Gaberova, 29, all Bulgarian nationals who lived in London and Norfolk, were arrested by counterterrorism police in February this year.

They did not enter a plea at this stage and were remanded in custody until their next appearance at London's Old Bailey court on Oct. 13.

Roussev, Dzhambazov, and Ivanova had already been charged with identity document offences and are due to appear at the Old Bailey on Thursday over those allegations.

Describing the charges, prosecutor Kathryn Selby told Westminster Magistrates' Court the defendants were accused of being part of an organised network which had carried out surveillance and hostile action on behalf of Russia against specific targets, including for potential abductions.

Selby said Roussev's home was the group's alleged operating hub in Britain, and said the network had been given tasking by a person known as Jan Marsalek.

Marsalek, the former chief operating officer for collapsed payments company Wirecard, is wanted by German police over alleged fraud and his whereabouts are currently unknown.

He has not been charged with any crime in Britain but was named as an alleged co-conspirator in the charges against the five Bulgarians. The office of Marsalek’s lawyer declined to comment.

Britain has been seeking to take tougher action on external security threats and potential spies, and in July passed a national security law, aiming at overhauling its means of deterring espionage and foreign interference with new tools and criminal provisions.

At the time, the government labelled Russia as "the most acute threat" to its security.

There has been no response from the Russian embassy in London to the news of the accusations.

Last November, Britain's domestic spy chief said more than 400 suspected Russian spies had been expelled from Europe, striking the "most significant strategic blow" against Moscow in recent history.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.