Spy ring passed secrets to Russia for years, court told

A UK-based spy ring passed secrets to Russia for nearly three years, endangering the national interest and putting “many lives at risk”, a court has heard. Bulgarian nationals Katrin Ivanova, 33, Vanya Gaberova, 30, and Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev, 39, were allegedly part of a group which carried out surveillance on opponents of the Russian state, even discussing kidnapping or killing one of them.

- EMILY PENNINK

The ring spied on a US airbase in Germany where Ukrainian troops were said to be trained, and attempted to curry favour from Kazakhstan by staging a fake demonstration outside its embassy, jurors heard.

There was discussion about deploying the two female defendants as “honeytrap” agents, as activities spanned London, Vienna, Valencia, Montenegro and Stuttgart, the Old Bailey was told.

Opening the trial yesterday, prosecutor Alison Morgan KC told jurors: “They were targeting people and places where the information that they obtained would be of particular use to Russia.

“It was highly sensitive information. By gathering the information and passing it on to the Russian state, the defendants were putting many lives at risk. By conducting activity of this type, planned on UK soil, these defendants were acting in a way that was prejudicial to the safety and interests of the UK.”

Hundreds of “sophisticated” devices were used to gather intelligence, including hidden bugs and jammers, jurors heard.

Among the spy kit were 33 audio devices, 55 visual recording devices, 221 mobile phone phones, 495 SIM cards, 11 drones, 75 passports and 91 bank cards in various names, Ms Morgan said.

Hundred of thousands of pounds were channelled into the ring via their Russian spymaster “Rupert Ticz”, said to be Austrian national Jan Marsalek, the court heard.

The spy ring included two more defendants, Orlin Roussev and Biser Dzhambazov, who have pleaded guilty to espionage charges and accept having fake identity documents, the court was told.