‘Russian spies posed as journalists to carry out surveillance in UK’

A trio of Bulgarians who were arrested on suspicion of spying for Russia had allegedly posed as journalists to carry out surveillance on targets in London and Europe, it has emerged.

Orlin Roussev, Bizer Dzhambazov and Katrin Ivanova were among the five people arrested in February under the British Official Secrets Act following raids on properties in London and Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. MI5 allegedly passed the intelligence on to the Met Police.

They have been charged under the British Identity Documents Act with possessing 19 fake documents with ‘improper intention’, including passports, identity cards and papers for the UK, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, France, Croatia, Slovenia, Greece and the Czech Republic. 

The trio has also been accused of posing as journalists from American television companies after Scotland Yard found forged press cards and branded clothing from the Discovery and National Geographic channels, The Times reported.

The forgery operation – which aimed to surveil targets in London, Germany and Montenegro – was allegedly run by Roussev, 45, out of a guesthouse in Norfolk. Investigators allegedly found equipment to produce false documents in his room.

The Bulgarians, who wait to stand trial next year, also had links to a flat in north-west London located a mile away from the RAF Northolt military base, according to The Telegraph. The base is frequently used by ministers, foreign heads of state and members of the royal family.

Orlin Roussev, (pictured) Bizer Dzhambazov and Katrin Ivanova were among the five people arrested in February under the British Official Secrets Act following raids on properties in London and Great Yarmouth in Norfolk

They have been charged under the British Identity Documents Act with possessing 19 fake documents with ‘improper intention’, including passports, identity cards and papers for various countries. Pictured: Katrin Ivanova

The trio has also been accused of posing as journalists from American television companies after Scotland Yard found forged press cards and branded clothing from the Discovery and National Geographic. Pictured: Bizer Dzhambazov

The three Bulgarians who have been charged in the national security investigation have been residents in Britain for several years and have lived in a variety of suburban locations while working in a number of jobs. 

Roussev, of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, reportedly has a history of business dealings in Russia. He moved to the UK in 2009 and worked in a technical role in the telecoms sector, according to his Linkedin profile. 

The page also claims that he once advised the Bulgarian ministry of energy. He is understood to have been arrested at a seaside guesthouse owned by a Bulgarian businesswoman.

Neighbours said a tent was erected by police outside the three-star Haydee Hotel in Great Yarmouth when Roussev was detained.

Dzhambazov, 41, and Ivanova, 31, of Harrow, northwest London, ran a community group that helped Bulgarians integrate into the ‘culture and norms’ of British society.

Neighbours said they were popular figures locally, having handed out cakes and pies to people living nearby.

The pair also worked for electoral commissions in the capital that assisted Bulgarians living abroad with voting back in their homeland.

According to social media profiles, Dzhambazov worked as a hospital driver while Ivanova described herself as a laboratory assistant for a private healthcare business.

Roussev lived in his block of apartments in the seaside town of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk

Partying: Katrin Ivanova, right, is seen dancing at a Bulgarian restaurant in Palmers Green, north London

Ivanova (circled) can be seen holding hands in a party circle at the Bulgarian restaurant in 2015

Neighbours said the ‘unremarkable’ pair appeared to be in a relationship and spoke of their shock upon learning they had been arrested.

A 31-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman, both from London, remain under investigation.

Roussev, Dzhambazov and Ivanova are due to go on trial for the identity offences at the Old Bailey in London in January. They have yet to enter pleas to the identity document charges. 

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: ‘On February 8, 2023, officers from the Met’s Specialist Operations arrested five people on suspicion of an offence under the Official Secrets Act 1911.’ 

A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said: ‘The CPS has authorised charges against Orlin Roussev, Bizer Maicimov Dzhambazov, and Katrin Ivanova with possession of an identity document with improper intention, contrary to the Identity Documents Act.’

The Bulgarian embassy in London said on Tuesday that it had not been informed that three of its citizens had been detained on suspicion of espionage. 

Bizer Dzhambazov (left) and Ivanova have been held in custody and are suspected of working for Russia

Dzhambazov and Ivanova ran a community organisation providing services to Bulgarians. The group was called Bulgarian Social Platform and this is believed to be their offices 

Dzhambazov Ivanova were also both registered at the same address in Harrow, north London 

Britain has been sharpening its focus on external security threats and last month it passed a new national security law, aiming to deter espionage and foreign interference with updated tools and criminal provisions. 

The government labeled Russia ‘the most acute threat’ to its security when the law was passed.

Police have charged three Russians, who they say are GRU military intelligence officers, with the 2018 attempt to murder former double agent Sergei Skripal with the military-grade nerve agent Novichok. Two were charged in 2018 and the third in 2021.

Last year, Britain’s domestic spy chief said more than 400 suspected Russian spies had been expelled from Europe.

Britain has been one of the strongest supporters of Ukraine since the Russian invasion last year and has imposed a range of sanctions on Russian officials and oligarchs.