6 Bulgarians convicted of spying for Russia get prison terms up to nearly 11 years

LONDON (AP):

Six Bulgarians convicted of carrying out a sophisticated spying operation for Russia were sentenced by a London judge Monday to prison terms pf up to nearly 11 years.

The group that used Hollywood code names discussed kidnapping or killing Kremlin opponents as they targeted reporters, diplomats, and Ukrainian troops in the UK, Germany, Austria, Spain, and Montenegro between 2020 and 2023, prosecutors said.

No one was physically harmed, but the group put lives in jeopardy, prosecutors said.

“It is self-evident that a high price attaches to the safety and interests of this nation,” Justice Nicholas Hilliard, said. “The defendants put these things at risk by using this country as a base from which to plan the various operations. ... Anyone who uses this country in that way, in the circumstances of this case, commits a very serious offence.”

Ringleader Orlin Roussev, who operated out of a former guesthouse in the English seaside resort town of Great Yarmouth, was given the stiffest sentence – 10 years and eight months in prison – for being involved in all six operations discovered by police. He and the others faced up to 14 years behind bars.

Roussev worked for alleged Russian agent Jan Marsalek, an Austrian national who is wanted by Interpol for fraud and embezzlement after the 2020 collapse of German payment processing firm Wirecard, prosecutors said. His whereabouts are unknown.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis said the case sends a warning to other foes that Britain will use its “full range of tools” to “detect, disrupt, and deter malicious acts from hostile states and protect the public”.

Roussev, 47, and his lieutenant, Biser Dzhambazov, 44, pleaded guilty in London’s Central Criminal Court last year to espionage charges and having false identity documents. Dzhambazov was sentenced to 10 years and two months in prison.

Roussev called himself Jackie Chan, and Dzhambazov was dubbed Mad Max, or Jean-Claude Van Damme. Their underlings were dubbed “Minions” from the animated “Despicable Me” franchise.

Police said their fanciful pseudonyms masked a deadly serious gang.

In one operation, members tried to lure a journalist who uncovered Moscow’s involvement in the 2018 Novichok poisoning of a former Russian spy in Salisbury, England, into a “honeytrap” romance with another member of the group, Vanya Gaberova.

Roussev’s house was loaded with spy tech. He had equipment used to jam Wi-Fi and GPS signals, along with eavesdropping devices and car trackers. Cameras were hidden in sunglasses, pens, neckties and cuddly toys, including one in a Minion doll.

A selfie of Marsalek wearing a Russian uniform was found on Roussev’s phone.

Three of the so-called minions were convicted at trial in March of spying for an enemy state.

Katrin Ivanova, 33, was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison; Gaberova, 30, was sentenced to six years and eight months; and Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev, 39, was sentenced to eight years.

Ivan Stoyanov, 33, a mixed martial arts fighter who pleaded guilty to spying for Russia, was sentenced to five years and three weeks.

Each convict faces deportation after they are released from prison.