A UK court Monday handed down jail terms of up to 10 years to six Bulgarians convicted for belonging to a Russian espionage cell described as like something from a “spy novel”.
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Fake passports, hidden cameras, a spy love triangle and secret online chats about potential abductions and honeytraps were uncovered by investigators.
Orlin Roussev, 47, headed the operation from a run-down former guest house in the eastern English seaside resort of Great Yarmouth where police found a “treasure trove” of spy paraphernalia.
Sentencing the group at London’s Old Bailey criminal court, judge Nicholas Hilliard said the potential risks of the spying on the UK and the individuals targeted would have been clear.
The cell’s operations are believed to be among the “largest and most complex” enemy plots ever uncovered on British soil.
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The spies were motivated by money and operated across borders in the UK, Austria, Spain, Germany and Montenegro, the court heard.