UK arrests three on suspicion of helping Russian spy services

UK counter-terror police have arrested two men and a woman in southeast England on suspicion of spying for Russia, the Metropolitan Police said on Thursday.

“All three were arrested on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service, contrary to section 3 of the National Security Act,” police said, adding that the suspects were taken to a police station in London before being released on conditional bail.

A 41-year-old man and 35-year-old woman were arrested at the same address, and a 46-year-old man at a different address the Grays area of southeastern Essex.

“We’re seeing an increasing number of who we would describe as ‘proxies’ being recruited by foreign intelligence services,” said Counter Terrorism Command head Dominic Murphy.

Six Bulgarians were jailed in May for their roles in a Russian espionage cell run out of a former guesthouse in the eastern English seaside resort of Great Yarmouth.

A number of people are awaiting sentence for an arson attack on a warehouse supplying Ukraine with communications equipment after being recruited by the Russian paramilitary Wagner group.

Last year, Britain’s MI5 chief Ken McCallum warned that Russia’s intelligence service was intent on causing “mayhem” in the UK over its support for Ukraine.

The UK domestic intelligence head added that Russia had resorted to employing criminals and private intelligence to do their work on British soil.

“Anyone who might be contacted by and tempted into carrying out criminal activity on behalf of a foreign state here in the UK should think again,” warned Murphy.