Back in vogue are Russian spies. Especially when one of the suspected Russian spies that were arrested by the FBI is Anna Chapman. Federal prosecutors accused 11 individuals of being part of a Russian spy ring that was living within the U.S. under deep cover for 10 years. The moles took roles ranging from mild-mannered suburban couples, stylish young professionals and Anna Chapman, explained by The New York Post as “a 28-year-old divorcee with a masters in economics, an online real-estate business, a fancy financial district apartment and a Victoria’s Secret body.”
Russian spies caught by FBI trap
The alleged Russian spies were arrested after an FBI investigation that began at least seven years ago. As outlined by The New York Times, authorities said the Russian spy ring was part of the “Illegals Program,” a long-term operation hatched by the SVR, the successor to the Soviet KGB, to plant Russian spies within the U.S. to collect information and recruit more agents. The alleged secret agents were charged with conspiracy — not to commit espionage, but to fail to register as agents of a foreign government. It was unclear what secrets Russian beauty Anna Chapman and her band of merry moles really managed to steal.
Going Hollywood are all of the Russian spies
Prosecutors explained that the Russian spies within the Illegals Program were angling for intelligence on the Obama administration’s foreign policy, particularly toward Russia. According to the Associated Press, the FBI intercepted a message from KGB successor SVR’s headquarters to two of the 10 suspects describing their mission as “to search and develop ties in policymaking circles in US.” Papers submitted in federal court claim some of the Russian spy ring’s members lived married, used invisible ink, coded radio transmissions and encrypted data, and employed Hollywood methods such as swapping bags in passing encounters at a train station. The Guardian reports that “Russia’s foreign ministry dismissed the allegations as groundless and unseemly.”
Could this be a Medvedev/Obama BFF sabotage?
The intended Russian spies were arrested three days after Russian president Dmitry Medvedev left the U.S. after a friendly visit with President Obama in Washington. Sergei Lavrov, who’s a Russia’s veteran foreign minister, hinted that the arrests may be part of an internal U.S. plot to sabotage the Medvedev/Obama friendship and U.S.-Russian relations. Moscow is going to have to respond somehow. But none of the alleged Russian spies were diplomats or consular officials – making a classic tit-for-tat expulsion unlikely. Some expect Russia to announce that it has uncovered a spy ring of its own.
Anna Chapman seems to blow her cover
As the FBI noose tightened around the suspected Russian spies, as outlined by the New York Daily News, Anna Chapman realized her cover had been blown. Chapman ran into a Brooklyn Verizon store and purchased a cell phone that she got under the name, “Irine Kustov of 99 Fake Street.” The investigators realized their cover was blown also. They started to round up the suspected Russian spies. Chapman and other spies were in court Monday. They could face up to five years in prison if convicted of acting as unregistered foreign agents.
Citations:
New York Times
nytimes.com/2010/06/29/world/europe/29spy.html
Associated Press
google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j_Fmz__pKb-YmXtA5fSYdbz6ptRAD9GL0GGO0
The Guardian
guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/29/russian-spy-ring-claims-bilateral-ties
New York Daily News
nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/06/29/2010-06-29_untitled__2spies29m.html
