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BBC News
26-03-2025
- BBC News
How BBC track down two women wey spy for Russia inside Europe
Two women wey be part of one Russian spy network wey dem dey run from UK don get name for di first time today afta one BBC investigation. Di Bulgarian nationals, Cvetelina Gencheva and Tsvetanka Doncheva, follow for di surveillance operations wey di spy group do against pipo wey dem dey monitor. But di two women no gree tok wen BBC reach out to dem. Ms. Gencheva, wey dey work for airline, cut call wen dem contact am for phone, and later say she no wan tok about di mata for letter wey dem send. Ms. Doncheva deny say she by hersef and waka comot wen dem approach am near her house for Vienna, Austria. Six oda Bulgarians dey wait for sentencing for London sake of di role wey dem play for di Russian spying network. Police describe di network as one "highly sophisticated" operation wey put pipo life for danger. Three pipo plead guilty, say dem know say dem dey work for Russia, while anoda three wey face trial for di Old Bailey dem no fit convince di jury say dem no do am. Di spy group dey controlled from abroad by Jan Marsalek, one Austrian businessman wey work for Germany bifor e turn Russian intelligence asset. Di group target include journalists wey don investigate Russian espionage. One of dem, Roman Dobrokhotov, tell BBC say e believe say na Vladimir Putin dey behind evri tin. For court, dem hear about two mystery women wey join for di surveillance operations across Europe. BBC use open source digital research and talk to some people to track di women down and confirm dia identities. Di mystery airline worker Ms. Gencheva, wey dey live for di Bulgarian capital, Sofia, use her work for di airline industry take get private flight details of di pipo wey di spy group dey target. Di spies go follow di pipo enta plane, book seat near dem, and even see wetin dem dey type for dia phone. One time, dem even fit see and note di PIN number for journalist Roman Dobrokhotov phone. Ms. Gencheva join di team wey dem send go Berlin to spy on Mr. Dobrokhotov she dey inside chat groups wit three of di pipo wey UK convict for spying—di cell leader Orlin Roussev, Biser Dzhambazov, and Katrin Ivanova—na inside dis chats dem dey co-ordinate di spying work. She provide flight details for journalist Christo Grozev and also get task to gada as plenty travel information as possible for anoda target, Russian dissident Kirill Kachur. For di Old Bailey trial, dem call di mystery airline worker "Cvetka" or "Sveti." BBC first identify Ms. Gencheva through her social media profiles. For Facebook, she don interact wit Katrin Ivanova and Biser Dzhambazov. From dia, we find say she be airline worker. Her LinkedIn profile show say she don work for ticket sales for different travel companies. Bulgarian company records also show say she be di sole owner of International Aviation Consult. Screen captures of travel data wey dem find for a hard drive wey belong to di spy cell leader, Roussev, come from airline industry software wey sabi as "Amadeus." For her LinkedIn profile, Ms. Gencheva even list say she sabi use di software well. Afta BBC research identify Ms. Gencheva, one source confam to BBC say Bulgarian security services sabi her as person wey get connection to di spy network. But she neva dey charged wit any crime. We contact Ms. Gencheva for one Bulgarian phone number wey she dey use for real estate work. Afta she hear say na BBC News dey call and dem dey record di call, she cut di call sharply, no even wait hear di reason for di call. For one letter we send her show di evidence wey dem get about her. She reply say she "no wan tok about di case" and no gree make dem use her name. She write di response for Bulgarian and claim say she no sabi English well. But for her public LinkedIn profile, she list her English skill as "full professional proficiency" and even tok say she study for English up to degree level. Di woman for Vienna Ms. Doncheva help spy on investigative journalist Christo Grozev for Vienna by renting a flat opposite wia e dey live and set up a camera to take pictures of im house. She also collect money to run one anti-Ukraine propaganda campaign wey include to put stickers for different places, including Vienna Soviet war memorial, to make Ukraine supporters look like neo-Nazis. BBC identify Ms. Doncheva through her social media profiles afta di Old Bailey trial tok about one "Tsveti" wey work wit di spy group. Sources for Austria later confam say na she be di pesin. For Vienna, she meet wit at least three of di pipo wey UK convict for spying—Vanya Gaberova, Biser Dzhambazov, and Katrin Ivanova. Ms. Doncheva also dey involved for spying on senior Austrian officials, including di head of di Secret Service, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner anoda target na Austrian investigative journalist Anna Thalhammer, wey don write about Russian espionage. She no get work, and Austrian police arrest her for December. Court documents wey Austrian magazines Profil and Falter first publish, and wey BBC later see tok say she dey "strongly suspected of committing secret intelligence crimes against Austria". She tell investigators say na her long-time friend, Vanya Gaberova—one of di six Bulgarians wey dey wait for sentencing send her to do di surveillance. She claim say Gaberova give her list of names, addresses, and fotos. She tell police say di odas deceive her dem first tok say dem dey run one "student project," later dem tell her say dem dey work for Interpol. But Austrian investigators tok say e no make sense at all say Ms. Doncheva believe dis kind "dubious stories." Di documents also reveal say di spy network wey she join dey controlled by Jan Marsalek from Moscow on behalf of Russian intelligence services evidence wey investigators seize show say Marsalek and UK spy cell leader Orlin Roussev contract her for di spying job. Di documents tok say na Marsalek give order tell dem say Anna Thalhammer na di target. Ms. Doncheva confess to police say she take foto of di journalist former workplace and even try watch her from one restaurant nearby. Ms. Thalhammer, wey now be editor for Austrian news magazine Profil, tell BBC say na police first inform her last year say dem dey spy on her, and now she sabi say dem don dey watch her for some time. "She (Ms. Doncheva) just siddon for front of di office inside one fine fish restaurant. I fit recommend am, e good," she tok. She complain say di place cost too much, say she need more money. Dem come give her di money." She add say "dat woman" (Ms. Doncheva) also spy on plenty "high-ranked pipo." Ms. Thalhammer no sabi evriwia wey dem follow am go, but she know say some of her sources don dey exposed and dem even try break enta dia houses. She tok say "Vienna na di capital of spies" but nobody don ever face serious punishment for espionage for di city because "di law here dey favour spies." "I dey frustrated, and honestly, I fear small," she add. "I dey live alone wit my daughter. No be better feeling to know say di state no dey protect journalists, politicians, or even anybodi wey dem dey threaten." Ms. Doncheva na pesin wey dey use social media well well e even reach di point wey her cat get TikTok account. For 2022 and 2023, she post one picture of herself for Facebook wia she wear Vladimir Putin T-shirt. Somebody comment say for Russia, plenty women wan born Putin pikin. Ms. Doncheva reply say "no be only for Russia," den she add one lip-licking emoji. Wen BBC approach her for one street for Vienna, she deny say she be hersef and refuse ansa any kwesion. But we don confam say na Ms. Doncheva be di woman. Wen BBC approach her, she wear clothes and carry items wey dem don see bifor for Ms. Doncheva social media posts: one obvious blue tracksuit, glass, and one patterned mobile phone case. We also see her enta Ms. Doncheva registered home address less dan 20 minutes afta she deny say she be Ms. Doncheva. She neva respond to di letter wey give her chance to tok her own side. Di two women work togeda wit di six Bulgarians wey dem convict for conspiring to spy for Russia. UK police recover almost 80,000 Telegram messages between Roussev and him controller, Marsalek. Di messages expose different operations wey di spy group don run for years bifor February 2023, wen police disrupt dia activities. Di spies wey base for UK even target Ukrainian sojas wey dem believe say dey train for US military base for Germany. Roussev and Marsalek even discuss plan to kidnap and kill journalists Christo Grozev and Roman Dobrokhotov. Unlike di six spies wey UK convict, Ms. Doncheva and Ms. Gencheva neva enta police custody and dem neva convict dem of any offence. Austrian public prosecutor bin request make dem put Ms. Doncheva for pre-trial detention, but court reject di request and release her. Austrian court documents, dem tok say Ms. Doncheva "no get risk" of running away becos she dey "socially integrated" for di kontri and dey take care of her mama di court also tok say di risk say she go commit anoda crime no too high, since di oda pipo wey dey involve don already dey prison for UK. Ms. Thalhammer tell BBC say she "no fit understand" why dem release di pesin wey spy on her. "Maybe [dem] no suppose believe evritin wey spy tok," she add. She tok say Austrian secret service believe say oda spy groups still dey active and dem neva stop work, even after di arrest of di six Bulgarians for UK. Ms. Gencheva still dey free for Bulgaria, dey present herself as experienced airline and travel industry professional. Afta BBC contact her, she change her profile name for Facebook and LinkedIn, but she still list her proficiency with Amadeus airline software.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Yahoo
Two women who spied for Russia tracked down and named by BBC
Two women who were part of a Russian spy network run from the UK are named for the first time today by a BBC investigation. Bulgarian nationals Cvetelina Gencheva and Tsvetanka Doncheva took part in elaborate surveillance operations against people spied on by the cell. Neither woman answered questions when contacted by the BBC. Ms Gencheva, an airport worker, hung up when contacted by phone, and said she did not want to comment on the case in response to a subsequent letter. Ms Doncheva denied being herself and walked away when approached near her home in Vienna, Austria. Six other Bulgarians are awaiting sentencing in London for their roles in spying for Russia as part of the cell. Police described the network as a "highly sophisticated" operation that threatened lives. Three pleaded guilty, admitting knowing they were working for Russia, while three more were convicted this month after a trial at the Old Bailey having failed to persuade the jury that they didn't. The cell was directed from abroad by Jan Marsalek, originally from Austria, who was a business executive in Germany who became a Russian intelligence asset. The cell's targets included journalists who have investigated Russian espionage. One, Roman Dobrokhotov, told the BBC he believed Vladimir Putin was ultimately responsible. The court heard about two mystery women who took part in surveillance operations in Europe. The BBC tracked down and confirmed the identities of both women through open source digital research and speaking to sources. Ms Gencheva, who lives in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, exploited her work in the airline industry to obtain private flight details of people targeted by the cell. Spies followed the people onto planes and were booked in nearby seats, getting so close as to see what was being typed into their targets' mobiles phones, even at one stage identifying a Pin number for a phone belonging to journalist Roman Dobrokhotov. Ms Gencheva was part of a team sent to Berlin to spy on Mr Dobrokhotov, and she was a member of chat groups with three of those convicted of spying in the UK case - cell leader Orlin Roussev, Biser Dzhambazov and Katrin Ivanova - which were used to co-ordinate the spying. She provided flight details for journalist Christo Grozev, and was tasked with gathering as much travel information as possible on another target of the cell, Russian dissident Kirill Kachur. During the Old Bailey trial, the mystery airline worker was known as "Cvetka" or "Sveti". How spy ring did Russia's dirty work from the UK I'm lucky to be alive, says journalist tracked by Russian spies Russian spy ring's plans to kill journalist 'beyond imagination' The BBC first identified Ms Gencheva through her social media profiles. On Facebook, she had interacted with Katrin Ivanova and Biser Dzhambazov. We then found she was an airline worker. According to her Linkedin profile, she has held positions in ticket sales for travel companies. Bulgarian company filings say she is the sole owner of International Aviation Consult. Screen captures of travel data found on a hard drive belonging to cell leader Roussev were from airline industry software known as "Amadeus". On her LinkedIn profile, we found Ms Gencheva noted her proficiency with the software. After the BBC's research identified Ms Gencheva, a source confirmed to the BBC that she is known to the Bulgarian security services as being connected to the spy network. She is not charged with any offence. We contacted Ms Gencheva on a Bulgarian phone number she uses for real estate work. She hung up when informed the call was from BBC News and was being recorded, not even waiting for an explanation of what we were calling about. In response to a letter setting out the evidence relating to her, she said she did "not wish to comment on the case" and did not consent for her name to be used. Writing in Bulgarian, she claimed not to speak English well. However, her public LinkedIn profile lists her English ability as "full professional proficiency" and says she has studied in English to degree level. Ms Doncheva helped spy on the investigative journalist Christo Grozev in Vienna, occupying a flat opposite where he lived and operating a camera that took images of his home. She was paid to conduct an anti-Ukraine propaganda campaign, which included putting stickers on locations including Vienna's Soviet war memorial and was intended to make supporters of Ukraine appear like neo-Nazis. The BBC identified Ms Doncheva through her social media profiles after the Old Bailey trial heard about a "Tsveti" who had worked with the cell. Sources in Austria then confirmed her identity. In Vienna, she met at least three of those convicted of spying in the UK case - Vanya Gaberova, Biser Dzhambazov and Katrin Ivanova. Senior Austrian officials, including the head of the Secret Service Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, were among those selected for surveillance by Ms Doncheva, alongside the Austrian investigative journalist Anna Thalhammer, who has written about Russian espionage. Ms Doncheva, who is unemployed, was arrested by Austrian police in December. Court documents first reported by the Austrian magazines Profil and Falter, and later seen by the BBC, reveal she is "strongly suspected of having committed the crime of secret intelligence to the detriment of Austria". She told investigators she conducted surveillance after being asked by long-time friend Vanya Gaberova - one of the six Bulgarians awaiting sentencing. She said Gaberova provided her with a list of names, addresses and photographs. She initially told police she had been misled by the others, who first told her they were conducting a "student project" and later that they were working for Interpol. But Austrian investigators are recorded as saying it is "incomprehensible" that Ms Doncheva believed such "dubious stories". The documents say the intelligence cell in which Ms Doncheva operated was ultimately controlled by Jan Marsalek from Moscow on behalf of the Russian intelligence services and that evidence seized by investigators shows she was contracted by Marsalek and the UK cell leader Orlin Roussev. The documents say Marsalek directed that Anna Thalhammer be targeted. Ms Doncheva admitted to police she had photographed the journalist's then workplace and sought to watch her from a nearby restaurant. Ms Thalhammer, now editor of Austrian news magazine Profil, told the BBC she was first told about being spied on last year by police, and she is now aware of being watched for some time. "She obviously sat in front of the office in a very nice fish restaurant. I really can recommend it. She complained that it's too expensive, that she needs more money. She got that money." She says "that woman" also spied on a number of "high-ranked people". Ms Thalhammer does not know where else she was followed, but that some of her sources were identified and attempts were made to break into their homes. She says "Vienna is the capital of spies" but no one has been sentenced in the city for espionage and the "law here is great for spies". "I'm frustrated and I'm also honestly a little bit scared," she added. "I live alone with my daughter. It's not so nice to know that the state doesn't take care if somebody is threatening journalists, politicians or anybody else." A prolific social media user - even her cat has a TikTok account - Ms Doncheva posted a photo of herself on Facebook in a Vladimir Putin T-shirt in 2022 and 2023. When someone commented that in Russia a large percentage of women want to have Putin's baby, Ms Doncheva replied saying not only in Russia, followed by a lip-licking emoji. Ms Doncheva denied being herself when approached by the BBC in a Vienna street and refused to answer questions, but we have verified that the woman was indeed Ms Doncheva. When approached, she was wearing clothes and carrying items seen in Ms Doncheva's social media posts: a distinctive blue tracksuit, a pair of glasses, and a patterned mobile phone case. We also observed her entering Ms Doncheva's registered home address less than 20 minutes after she denied being Ms Doncheva. She has not responded to a letter offering her a chance to comment. The two women worked alongside the six Bulgarians who were convicted of conspiring to spy for Russia. A cache of almost 80,000 Telegram messages between Roussev and his controller Marsalek was recovered by UK police. The messages revealed multiple operations carried out by the cell in the years before February 2023, when their activities were disrupted by police. The UK-based spies even targeted Ukrainian soldiers thought to be training at a US military base in Germany. Roussev and Marsalek discussed kidnapping and killing journalists Christo Grozev and Roman Dobrokhotov. Unlike the six spies convicted in the UK, Ms Doncheva and Ms Gencheva are not in custody and have not been convicted of any offence. The Austrian public prosecutor's request for pre-trial detention of Ms Doncheva was rejected and she was released. Austrian court documents state there is "no risk" of Ms Doncheva absconding because she is "socially integrated" in the country and cares for her mother, and that a risk of further crime is not particularly high given the imprisonment in the UK of others involved, Ms Thalhammer told the BBC she "can't understand" why the person who spied on her was released. "Maybe [they] shouldn't believe everything a spy says." She said the Austrian secret service thinks there are other spy cells and that their activity has continued after the arrest of the six Bulgarians in the UK. Ms Gencheva has remained free in Bulgaria, publicly presenting herself as an experienced airline and travel industry professional. After being contacted by the BBC, Ms Gencheva changed her profile name on Facebook and LinkedIn. She continues to list her proficiency with the Amadeus airline software.
Voice of America
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Voice of America
VOA Russian: Investigative reporter describes murder plot against him
As a court in London found three members of a Russian spy ring guilty, VOA Russian spoke to Roman Dobrokhotov, the editor-in-chief of the Russian investigative outlet The Insider, who was a target of the spy ring's plot. Dobrokhotov described how the group planned to kidnap and assassinate him and his colleague Christo Grozev after The Insider's groundbreaking investigation on the Kremlin's involvement in the poisoning of Alexey Navalny. Click here for the full story in Russian.
The Guardian
08-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Revealed: second Kremlin spy ring targeting Russian dissidents discovered in UK
A second Kremlin spy operation has been discovered targeting Russian dissidents in Britain, it can be revealed. Roman Dobrokhotov, a journalist in the sights of the six Bulgarians convicted of spying for Russia, said he had been informed of fresh attempts to surveil his family. 'I received a warning from the police last spring,' said Dobrokhotov, 41, who moved to the UK in January 2023. 'These attempts are ongoing.' The details of the warning given to Dobrokhotov, who fled Moscow in 2021, are being withheld on his request, as is the location of him and his wife, Kate, and their two sons, aged eight and 10. Six Bulgarian nationals with resident status in the UK – Vanya Gaberova, 30, Katrin Ivanova, 33, Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, Orlin Roussev, 47, Biser Dzhambazov, 43, and Ivan Stoyanov, 34 – were convicted of carrying out espionage operations at home and abroad. Jan Marsalek, 44, an Austrian national believed to be working as a Russian agent, masterminded the British operation from Moscow despite being wanted for his links to an alleged £1.6bn fraud at the disgraced German financial company Wirecard. Two of their targets were the journalists Christo Grozev and Dobrokhotov, who were responsible for unmasking the two Russian military intelligence officers who tried to murder Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury in 2018. Messages discovered by the police revealed that Dobrokhotov had been followed so closely that his iPhone pin number was picked up by one of the spies sitting next to him on a plane. There had also been discussions within the group about poisoning Dobrokhotov with ricin on the streets of London or abducting him using a small boat. The police warning of a new attempt to target Dobrokhotov came months after the arrest of the spy ring in February 2024. Dobrokhotov is the editor-in-chief of the Insider website, whose investigative work has led to about 80 companies and 60 people being hit with economic sanctions by the west over their roles in facilitating Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine. Dobrokhotov said: 'I understood that after the arrest of the Bulgarians, there must be still some continuous attention to me and Christo because we didn't stop our work. 'Also, because we were told by our source that, after this team controlled by [the] FSB [Russia's security service] was arrested, the task – the same task – is now given to the GRU [military intelligence]. 'We were expecting that there will be something continuing. So after police said that they know about some new attempts, that was not very surprising, just confirmation of what our Russian source was telling us.' Dobrokhotov said he recognised the need to be constantly on the move to avoid the attentions of the Kremlin. He said: 'All my family are worried, of course. They worry about me and they understand that they are not safe – if they put novichok [the biological agent used in the murder attempt on the Skripals] on the door handle, they can all suffer. 'On the other hand, it's the worst situation when you don't know whether you should be very much worried, or you can relax. You always doubt if you are paranoid about all of this stuff. So in some way, it's good to know that you know this situation.' A counter-terrorism policing spokesperson said: 'Counter-terrorism policing works closely with police forces, partners and communities to identify any repressive activity by foreign states in the UK and will seek to disrupt this activity where possible. 'This has been shown to be the case with a number of recent arrests and charges that have been made in relation to offences under the National Security Act. 'We would encourage members of the public to report any allegations of foreign interference to their local police force. 'On receipt of any such reports, officers would also assess whether there are any safeguarding or security concerns or issues and, in liaison with specialist officers, would be able to provide individuals affected with appropriate safety and security advice and support as required. 'Briefings on personal safety are not the limit of our activity to keep people safe, but they do create direct connections between individuals, organisations and policing. 'The importance of that advice should not be underestimated, and neither should the scale of operational activity taking place within our proactive investigations teams and with partner agencies to keep people safe.'
