Russian spy ring leader jailed in UK for nearly 11 years
World
Russian spy ring leader jailed in UK for nearly 11 years
LONDON (Reuters) - The leader of a British-based Russian spy ring which prosecutors said carried out surveillance for the Kremlin was sentenced in a London court on Monday to nearly 11 years in jail, as his five team members were jailed for a total of about 40 years.
Orlin Roussev, 47, pleaded guilty before trial to one count of conspiracy to spy for Russia after police found thousands of messages between him and Wirecard fugitive Jan Marsalek, who directed the unit of Bulgarian nationals from overseas.
Judge Nicholas Hilliard sentenced Roussev to 10 years and eight months in prison, telling Roussev that the operations he had directed posed a serious risk to Britain's national security.
Roussev is one of six Bulgarians convicted over their roles in the team directed by Marsalek to carry out surveillance on journalists, dissidents and Ukrainian soldiers being trained at a U.S. military base in Germany.
Three of the group were found guilty in March after a trial, while Roussev, his deputy Bizer Dzhambazov, 44, and a third man – Ivan Stoyanov, 33 – pleaded guilty last year.
Dzhambazov was sentenced to 10 years and two months, while his former partner Katrin Ivanova, 33, received a sentence of nine years and eight months.
Vanya Gaberova, 30, was sentenced to eight years in jail, minus a period of one year and three months which she has already spent in custody.
Her former partner Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, was sentenced to eight years. Stoyanov was sentenced to six years and four months, less time already served.
Prosecutors said the unit did not work directly for Russian intelligence and were motivated mostly by money.
The Russian embassy in London has not commented on the case, though the Kremlin has always rejected such spying allegations.
Relations between Britain and Russia have plunged to post-Cold War lows since the start of the Ukraine war, with Britain accusing Russia of trying to cause "mayhem" in Europe.
Marsalek's lawyer in Germany – where he is wanted as the former chief operating officer of collapsed payments company Wirecard – previously declined to comment.
