Latest news with #VanyaGaberova
ITV News
13-05-2025
- ITV News
Five of the most surprising revelations from the Russian 'Minions' spy ring trial
The Bulgarian ringleader of a UK-based spy network and his five 'Minions' have been jailed - but how did he operate the group from a rundown guesthouse in Norfolk? Orlin Roussev, 47, ran the Russian spy ring from the 33-bed property in Great Yarmouth alongside his five 'Minions' - the yellow sidekicks from the children's film Despicable Me whose name they used as an inside joke. Roussev was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Monday alongside his second-in-command Biser Dzhambazov, 44, Katrin Ivanova, 33, Vanya Gaberova, 30, Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev, 39, and 33-year-old Ivan Stoyanov. The homemade spy equipment Spyware recovered from the 33-bed coastal guesthouse included homemade audiovisual spy devices hidden inside a rock, men's ties, a Coke bottle and a Minions cuddly toy. In total, officers seized more than 1,800 items, many of which were cameras concealed in everyday objects. Roussev called the Great Yarmouth guesthouse his "Indiana Jones garage" - and police found a plethora of homemade audiovisual spy devices there. As well as storing camera devices in the Minions cuddly toy, the group named themselves after the children's characters as an "inside joke". But instead of the evil cartoon mastermind, Gru, the gang of six Bulgarians were working for the Russian intelligence service, the GRU. The group also used cameras hidden in glasses, which they used to record potential targets of their plots. Together, the group pinpointed people and places of interest to the Russian state - with female members Katrin Ivanova and Vanya Gaberova recruited as "honeytrap agents". A video released by the Met Police of Vanya Gaberova - who found her role "exciting and glamorous" according to Mr Justice Hilliard - using her spyglasses ' No James Bond activity on my end' When asked by officers why he had so many mobile phones, Roussev was adamant there was an innocent explanation. In police bodycam footage from his arrest, he said: "I have purchased some on Ebay and I'm repairing some of those." His excuses and lies continued into subsequent police interviews, and he even went as far as discussing the 007 films. "I will be thrilled to see how on God's earth there is a connection between me and Russia or any other state," he said in a police interview. "No James Bond activity on my end - I guarantee you." The love triangle at the heart of the spy ring Network second-in-command Dzhambazov was in a relationship with Ivanova, with the couple living together and working at the same medical laboratory. But Dzhambazov was also involved with Gaberova - and was found naked in bed with her when they were arrested. On Friday, Ivanova's barrister Rupert Bowers KC told the court she had been "lied to and manipulated by" Dzhambazov, despite never claiming herself that she had been coerced into spying for Russia. Mr Bowers said: "That is to her credit, but that is not to say that she was not lied to and manipulated by her partner, because she plainly was." However, sentencing the group on Monday, Judge Mr Justice Hilliard said Ivanova had "thrown in her lot" with Dzhambazov and "must have had a very good idea" of what was going on as a "trusted partner" and "enthusiastic participant" in the network. He also accepted that Dzhambazov lied about having cancer in order to maintain relationships with both women, which he said was "obviously distressing" for both women. "The damage is ongoing": The plot to kill a prominent journalist The group planned to assassinate investigative journalist Christo Grozev, who submitted a victim impact statement to the court in which he said their surveillance on him was "terrifying, disorientating and deeply destabilising". Mr Grozev was targeted after exposing Russian links to the Novichok poisoning of Sergei and Julia Skripal and the downing of a Malaysia Airlines plane in July 2014. While following Mr Grozev from Vienna to a conference in Valencia in Spain, Ivanova got close enough to him on the plane to record the passcode on his phone with a camera on the strap of her bag after the spies acquired his flight plans. "The consequences are not easily reversed - for my family and me, the damage is ongoing," said Mr Grozev. He said he had changed his daily routines because he fears he may still be at risk from others operating in the UK and elsewhere, and some of his sources are now "too afraid" to speak to him. The Met Police released a video taken on Ivanova's spyglasses of Mr Grozev on the plane to Valencia. The former competitive swimmer-turned-decorator who claimed he was tricked into spying Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev competed for Bulgaria as a swimmer at various FINA world championships in the late 2000s and according to his World Aquatics page, has won one silver and two bronze medals. After his arrest, he told police he had been in a relationship with Gaberova, who introduced him to Dzhambazov, who said he was an Interpol agent but had cancer. Ivanchev said Dzhambazov had tasked him with jobs in Vienna and Montenegro, with prosecutor Alison Morgan KC describing his activities as including following people, taking photos and videos and doing internet research. The court heard he was paid 200 euros a day, dropping to 150 euros, and he said he felt "stupid" to have got himself involved without seeing any proof Dzhambazov worked for Interpol. On Monday, Mr Justice Hilliard accepted Gaberova's responsibility for involving Ivanchev and said he was "sure" she knew talk of Interpol was "only a cover... ready to deploy if necessary". The fake Interpol ID was one of many forged documents used by members of the network, including fake passports for countries including France, Slovenia and Belgium - with Roussev himself having 18 fake identity documents.
Times
12-05-2025
- Times
Bulgarian honeytrap agents in Russian spy ring jailed
Two honeytrap agents who spied for Russia have been jailed after a judge ruled they were willing participants despite being tricked by their shared lover. Katrin Ivanova and Vanya Gaberova were both recruited to the espionage operation by Biser Dzhambazov, who ran the surveillance operations on the ground. Neither woman looked at Dzhambazov as six Bulgarian members of the spy ring controlled from a guesthouse in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, appeared for sentencing at the Old Bailey on Monday. Mr Justice Hilliard said the nation's 'safety and interests' were put at risk by the operations. He said spies provided a 'foothold' for the enemy intelligence services in the UK. The spies all have settled status in the UK under Brexit rules, but should be automatically deported
The Independent
12-05-2025
- The Independent
Russian honeytrap spy ‘controlled and coerced by fellow agent boyfriend'
A Russian honeytrap spy became 'besotted' with a fellow agent and would never have been involved in the plot were it not for him, a court has heard. Bulgarian beautician Vanya Gaberova, 30, was part of a spy ring which targeted people and places of interest to the Russian state over three years. Giving her mitigation before she is sentenced alongside five other Bulgarians, her barrister said she 'slipped into criminality' under the influence of her spy lover Biser Dzhambazov, 43. The court previously heard how she swapped her relationship with painter and decorator Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, for a life of luxury with 'ugly' but 'charming' Dzhambazov. The couple stayed in a five-star hotel in Valencia, Spain, dined at a Michelin-starred restaurant, and went clubbing during surveillance operations. When police burst into her home to arrest Dzhambazov for spying he lay naked in her bed. Gaberova smiled and waved at family members in the public gallery after taking her seat beside Dzhambazov in the dock at the Old Bailey. Defence barrister Anthony Metzer KC said: 'Were it not for her connection with Mr Dzhambazov, not only she but at least one other would not be here.' 'She played no management or operational role,' he continued, 'she was brought in by Mr Dzhambazov. 'She became besotted with Mr Dzhambazov… she was losing her sense of perspective. 'She slipped into criminality. (The relationship) clouded and distorted her judgment.' Her barrister said there was no evidence she had direct contact with alleged Russian agent Jan Marsalek or any Russian operatives. Mr Metzer continued: 'We say she was controlled, coerced into this conspiracy by Mr Dzhambazov. 'She fell in love with him and continued on her evidence to have feelings for him, not only on the date of her arrest but continued to have feelings for him even as she gave evidence, even though she was shocked, appalled and manipulated by him.' He told the court that beautician Gaberova was naive and under the control of her lover who had duped her with false claims he had cancer and worked for Interpol. Mr Metzer said Gaberova had been 'bullied' and 'assaulted' while in prison. 'She's been called all sorts of names,' he told the court. 'She has been subjected to assaults of various descriptions, once an incident on the way to court. She had assaults perpetrated on her that have added to her stress and anxiety.' The court heard she had been diagnosed with depression, panic disorder, claustrophobia and anxiety. Appealing for leniency for Gaberova, Mr Metzer suggested an appropriate sentence for her role would be five years in jail. He concluded: 'Overall this has been a tragic case as far as Ms Gaberova was concerned. She came to this country, she had performed admirably and well. 'She will no doubt be deported and return to her country a hugely diminished person with an otherwise bright future completely lost.' Gaberova was jailed for six years, eight months and three weeks. Sentencing her, Mr Justice Hilliard told her she knew what she was doing was for Russia and had found it 'exciting and glamorous'.
Daily Mail
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Bed-hopping Putin spy ring are jailed for carrying out 'industrial scale' espionage in Britain from Great Yarmouth guesthouse
Six members of a bed-hopping Russian spy ring run out of a Great Yarmouth guesthouse have been jailed today. The agents passed secrets to Russian intelligence for almost three years, spying on a US airbase in Germany and tailing opponents of Vladimir Putin - some of whom they plotted to kidnap, murder or snare in 'honeytraps'. Vladimir Putin's promiscuous gang of bed-hoppers were dubbed 'the Minions', after the yellow sidekicks from animated film Despicable Me, and ran one of the 'largest and most complex' enemy operations uncovered on UK soil. They carried out espionage on an 'industrial scale', putting lives and national security at risk. Beautician Vanya Gaberova, 30, and lab technician Katrin Ivanova, 33, were in a love triangle with the operations chief of the spy ring. Bizer Dzhambazov, 44, a delivery driver who ran the ground operations of the spy ring, pretended to have cancer to cover up his affair with Gaberova. His best friend Ivan Stoyanov, 33, a former cage fighter known as 'The Rock', who had represented Bulgaria at judo and sambo, was also involved. Gaberova's ex-boyfriend Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, a former champion international open water swimmer who worked as a painter and decorator in Enfield, North London, was also found guilty of conspiring to spy for Russia. At the head of the operation was Orlin Roussev, 46, who worked for a technology company at the London Stock Exchange before setting himself up as a freelance spy for hire. He ran operations from a guest house in Great Yarmouth bought for £220,000 in 2021 and received his orders from spy handler Jan Marsalek, a fugitive businessman wanted by international law enforcement over a £1.6bn fraud. Gaberova, Ivanchev and Ivanova were found guilty of conspiring to spy for Russia in March after a three-month trial and 32 hours of jury deliberations. Roussev, Dzhambazov and Stoyanov had already pleaded guilty to the charges under the Official Secrets Act. Decorator Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, (left) and Orlin Roussev, 46, (right) were both accused of being part of the ring. Roussev pled guilty at an earlier date Before sentencing, three of the Bulgarians – Roussev, Dzhambazov and Ivanova – remained in court eight, while their accomplices sat in the dock in an overflow court. Beautician Gaberova was seen laughing and joking with the dock officers who sat either side of her during a pause in proceedings. The 30-year-old had earlier wept in in court as her barrister, Anthony Metzer KC, said she was 'besotted' with her spy boss Dzhambazov, who duped her into joining the spy ring. 'She became besotted with Mr Dzhambazov... she was losing her sense of perspective,' Mr Metzer said. 'She slipped into criminality. [The relationship] clouded and distorted her judgment.' Police who raided Gaberova's flat found the beautician naked in bed with unlikely lothario Dzhambazov. His long-term partner, Ivanova, only learned of their affair when she herself was arrested. The group's well-financed activities spanned London, Vienna, Valencia, Montenegro and Stuttgart, with the two women intended to be used in a series of 'honeytrap' plots, their Old Bailey trial heard. At least £170,000 was sent by the group's Moscow-based handler, Marsalek, to finance the operations, which were planned across 80,000 messages. An 'Aladdin's Cave' of sophisticated technology including rocks containing hidden cameras, a £120,000 device for intercepting mobile phone numbers, 11 drones, 221 mobile phones and 75 fake passports were found at Roussev's guest house. The Bulgarian referred to himself as 'Q Branch' after James Bond's famous quartermaster, and built many of the devices himself. After their conviction, Commander Murphy, of Scotland Yard, said the investigation into the group was the largest he had seen in his two decades of counter-terrorism. 'This was spying on an almost industrial scale on behalf of Russia,' he added. 'It felt like something you would expect to read in a spy novel. This is not something we see very often.' The two women in the group were tasked with setting honeytraps for targets including journalist Christo Grozev, whose work uncovering the men behind the Salisbury nerve-agent attack made him a Kremlin target. The spies also targeted a UK-based Russian dissident who they discussed killing with a poison dart fired from a drone, and a Russian lawyer who they planned to bring to Moscow 'dead or alive' for a fee of £340,000. The agents used hi-tech equipment to try to track Ukrainian servicemen training at US airbase Patch Barracks in Stuttgart, with the aim of finding out where US Patriot missiles were being fired from. They agreed a £34,000-a-month budget for the operation, which was cut short when the spies were arrested by British police in February 2023. After the 2018 Salisbury poison attack, Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats identified as undeclared intelligence officers, and 100 Russian diplomat visa applications have been denied on security grounds in the years since. Russian intelligence agencies have turned to other methods to carry out covert plots, often using expendable proxy groups handlers refer to as 'misfits', the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, Jonathan Hall KC, said. 'The use of criminal proxies is one of the most demanding matters in the state threat world,' he told the Mail. 'And Orlin Roussev shows us that [the Russian state] is using very sophisticated actors. 'This activity was taking place while Russia was at war on one front with Ukraine and clearly willing to open up aggressive espionage fronts inside the UK and our western allies.' Mr Hall added: 'Using proxies means they are expendable. If they are apprehended then they won't know much about the wider system operating them.' Spies Katrin Ivanova (left) and Vanya Gaberova (right) are seen in an artist's illustration during an earlier appearance at Westminster Magistrates court via videolink Spy chief Roussev shown during the moment of his arrest at his Great Yarmouth home in 2023 At least £200,000 was sent by the group's Moscow-based handler, fugitive businessman Jan Marsalek, to finance the operations, which were planned over 80,000 messages exchanged with Roussev (pictured during his arrest) over Telegram Footage shows Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev speaking to a police officer outside the home of his ex-girlfriend Vanya Gaberova the day after she was arrested Britain had to work under the assumption that state-sponsored acts of sabotage and disruption would continue, he added. 'Spying is as old as the hills and there is no reason to think that the appetite is going to decrease. 'It is not limited to traditional spying, there is also information warfare designed to cause disruption, undermine systems and even influence voting. 'Some of it will be very attention-grabbing, murder for hire for example, but quite a lot of this is actually very subtle and a longterm influence operation. The harm is less immediately obvious and it is very hard to tell if there is a hidden hand at work.' Who are the Bulgarians convicted of spying for Russia? The spy handler, Jan Marsalek, 44 A fugitive businessman hiding out in Moscow, Jan Marsalek directed operations via 80,000 Telegram messages he exchanged with Orlin Roussev. One of Interpol's most wanted men, the 44-year-old former executive at German tech firm Wirecard has been on the run since the company collapsed in 2020 amid an alleged £1.6bn fraud. The grandson of a Soviet spy, Marsalek is thought to have first been brought into Russian intelligence by former GRU officer Stanislav Petlinsky after the pair met on a yacht at his girlfriend's birthday party in Nice, France, in 2014. He is understood to have received instructions directly from Russian intelligence at the heart of the Kremlin. 'Q Branch', Orlin Roussev, 46 Orlin Roussev, 46, ran operations from a guesthouse in Great Yarmouth bought for £220,000 in 2021. He referred to himself as 'Q Branch' because of his skills building spy gadgets, and thousands of pieces of sophisticated equipment, as well as forged identity documents, were found at his home. Among them were homemade devices including a camera hidden in a rock, a Coca-Cola bottle containing another concealed camera and a £120,000 IMSI grabber which can intercept mobile phone information. Roussev received orders directly from Marsalek along with hundreds of thousands of pounds to finance operations. He had a telecommunications background and moved to Britain in 2009. The adulterous middle-manager, Biser Dzhambazov, 43 Biser Dzhambazov was in charge of recruiting and directing the spies on the ground, receiving orders directly from Roussev. The 43-year-old moved to the UK with his long-term girlfriend Katrin Ivanova, 33, but began an affair with Vanya Gaberova after recruiting her to the spy ring in 2021. To explain his long absences to his mistress, he told her he had cancer and sent her photos of himself with 'bandages' made of toilet paper wrapped round his head. When police carried out a series of raids to round up the spies in February 2023 they found Dzhambazov and Gaberova naked in bed together. Bulgarian national Dzhambazov, 43, (pictured) previously admitted to spying in the UK on behalf of Russia Scorned girlfriend / chief minion, Ivanova, 33 Katrin Ivanova was Dzhambazov's long-term partner, having first started dating in Bulgaria when she was 17 and he was 27. She was referred to by Roussev and Marsalek as 'chief minion' and one half of the 'brunette twins' with Gaberova. Ivanova stalked journalist Christo Grozev and Russian dissident Roman Dobrokhotov on international flights, covertly filming them after the spies successfully accessed booking systems to place her near the targets. She learned of Dzhambazov's affair with Gaberova from a police statement after she was arrested. Katrin Ivanova was Dzhambazov's long-term partner, having first started dating in Bulgaria when she was 17 and he was 27 The Muscle, Ivan Stoyanov, 33 Ivan Stoyanov is a mixed martial arts fanatic from Greenford, west London, nicknamed 'The Rock. He met Dzhambazov and Ivanova through working at the same laboratory. The 'muscle' of the operation, Roussev described Stoyanov, who grew up in a tower block in Bulgaria's capital, as someone who 'completed the police academy in Sofia and is former European MMA [mixed martial arts] champion.' A video of Stoyanov's bruising 2015 heavyweight knockout victory over a fighter named Josh Roosevelt Jones remains on YouTube. Ivan Stoyanov (pictured) was a mixed martial arts fanatic from Greenford, west London, nicknamed 'The Rock Queen of the Lashes, Vanya Gaberova, 30 Vanya Gaberova ran a beauty parlour in Acton, west London, opened through a loan taken out by ex-boyfriend Tihomir Ivanchev. The multi-award winning beautician, known as 'Queen of the Lashes,' was brought into the spy ring after meeting Dzhambazov at a Bulgarian polling station in London in 2021. She recruited Ivanchev before leaving him to have an illicit affair with Dzhambazov. Described as a 'true sexy bitch' by her spy bosses, Gaberova was intended to carry out 'honeytrap' plots and was ordered to send a Facebook request to journalist Christo Grozev before attempting to seduce him. Vanya Gaberova (pictured in her custody photo) ran a beauty parlour in Acton, west London, opened through a loan taken out by ex-boyfriend Tihomir Ivanchev The swimmer, Tihomir Ivanchev, 39 Recruited into the ring by his then-girlfriend Vanya Gaberova, Tihomir Ivanchev had been a promising open water swimmer in his native Bulgaria before abandoning the sport and moving to London in 2012. A painter and decorator who worked seven days a week, Ivanchev said he was told the foreign spying trips would be 'more like paid holidays,' and went to visit the zoo in Vienna when he was tasked with following journalist Christo Grozev. Ivanchev was the last to be arrested and was very cooperative with police. His barrister told his trial that during questioning he 'sung like Justin Bieber, like a canary.' Tihomir Ivanchev (pictured) was the last to be arrested and was very cooperative with police
BBC News
12-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
'Minions' spies sentencing live: Judge to sentence Bulgarians convicted over Russian espionage
Old Bailey courtroom full as sentencing expected in two phases Daniel De Simone Reporting from the Old Bailey Court eight at the Old Bailey is full. There are no seats left. Some journalists are standing at the back of the court. Because there are six defendants, some of whom have multiple security guards, space in the dock itself is also limited. We therefore expect the judge to pass sentences in two phases – the first three defendants, then the other three. The barrister for Vanya Gaberova is currently making arguments in mitigation for his client. After he finishes, sentencing is expected to get underway.
