Russian spies in love triangle central to 'honeytrap' plot targeting dissidents across Europe, court hears

By EJ Ward

A UK-based spy ring passed sensitive information to Russia for nearly three years, endangering national security and putting "many lives at risk", the Old Bailey has heard.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

The Bulgarian-led group allegedly carried out surveillance on Russian dissidents, journalists, and other targets across Europe, even discussing kidnapping or killing one of them.

The operation, described as involving "high-level espionage with high levels of deceit", was led by Orlin Roussev and Biser Dzhambazov, both of whom have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to spy.

Three other defendants, Katrin Ivanova, 33, Vanya Gaberova, 30, and Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev, 39, deny the charges. Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said the group acted “in a way that was prejudicial to the safety and interests of the UK”, gathering intelligence that would be “of particular use to Russia”.

The court heard that the group targeted individuals and locations in six espionage operations spanning London, Vienna, Valencia, Montenegro, Stuttgart, and other locations between August 2020 and February 2023.

Jurors were told that the two female defendants were allegedly deployed as "honeytrap" agents, described as "sexual bait" to extract information from targets.

The first operation, between September and November 2021, focused on Christo Grozev, 54, an investigative journalist with Bellingcat.

Grozev’s work included exposing Russian links to the 2018 Salisbury poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, as well as the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014.

The spy ring reportedly tracked him across Vienna, Valencia, and Montenegro, discussing options such as robbing him, burning his property, kidnapping him, or even killing him.

Telegram chats revealed plans to place an agent next to him on a flight from Vienna to Valencia and infiltrate Bellingcat.

The second operation targeted Roman Dobrokhotov, 41, a UK-based Russian dissident and founder of The Insider, in November 2022. Dobrokhotov fled Russia after his investigative reporting made him a target of the Kremlin.

The third operation, in November 2021, focused on Kazakh former politician Bergey Ryskaliyev, who had been granted asylum in the UK. The group allegedly targeted him to cultivate favour with Kazakhstan on behalf of Russia.

A fourth operation involved staging a fake protest outside the Kazakh embassy in London in September 2022. The aim was to fabricate intelligence for Kazakhstan’s authorities to gain their trust and bolster Russia's influence.

The fifth operation centred on Patch Barracks, a US military base in Stuttgart, Germany, believed by the group to be training Ukrainian soldiers during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The defendants allegedly used advanced technology to gather sensitive intelligence, including equipment capable of compromising soldiers' mobile phones.

The sixth operation targeted Kirill Kachur, a former member of the Investigative Committee of Russia, who fled the country in 2021 and was designated a "foreign agent" by Russia. Kachur was monitored by the group while in Montenegro between September 2021 and January 2022.

Prosecutors revealed the group used an extensive array of sophisticated spy equipment, including 221 mobile phones, 495 SIM cards, 33 audio recording devices, 55 visual recording devices, 11 drones, eavesdropping devices, jammers, and hacking software.

Much of the equipment was found at Roussev’s guesthouse in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, where he lived with his wife and stepson. The operation also involved the use of 75 passports and 91 bank cards under various aliases.

Funding for the group came from Jan Marsalek, alias "Rupert Ticz", described as their Russian spymaster. Marsalek allegedly channelled hundreds of thousands of pounds into the operation, with Roussev passing £204,000 to Dzhambazov for distribution among the ring.

The court heard details of the defendants' relationships, with Dzhambazov, 34, romantically involved with both Ivanova, a laboratory assistant, and Gaberova, a beautician.

Gaberova had previously been in a relationship with Ivanchev, a painter and decorator from Enfield. Ivanova denies possessing 18 false identity documents, including passports from multiple European countries.

Morgan said: “By gathering the information and passing it on to the Russian state, the defendants were putting many lives at risk.” She added it was “fanciful to suggest” that the defendants were unaware of the risks or their actions' significance.

The defendants, who have EU settlement status allowing them to live in the UK, have denied all charges.

The trial continues at the Old Bailey.