Former Wirecard executive linked to alleged Russian spying ring

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Jan Marsalek, the former chief operating officer of Wirecard who disappeared after the German payments company collapsed, was on Tuesday named as a connection to Bulgarian nationals living in the UK who have been charged in London with suspected spying for Russia.

German authorities suspect Marsalek is in Moscow after he left Austria on a private jet to Minsk when Wirecard filed for insolvency in June 2020.

Five Bulgarian nationals — three men and two women — were on Tuesday remanded in custody after appearing via video link at Westminster magistrates’ court in London.

The five face a charge of conspiring to collect information for the Russian state over a period of three years.

Prosecutor Kathryn Selby outlined the charges to the court and alleged that all five defendants had carried out surveillance and information-gathering on targets from several locations on behalf of the Russian state.

It was alleged the targets were outside the UK and that spying was carried out on behalf of a man “known as Jan Marsalek”, who has not been charged in the case.

The defendants are Orlin Roussev, 45, from Great Yarmouth, Norfolk; Bizer Dzhambazov, 41, from Harrow, north London; Katrin Ivanova, 31, also from Harrow, north London; Ivan Stoyanov, 31, from Greenford, west London; and Vanya Gaberova, 29, from Churchway, north-west London.

Roussev’s home was said by Selby to be the alleged “operating hub for the offence of espionage”.

The five defendants are all jointly charged with conspiring to collect information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to an enemy for a purpose prejudicial to the safety and interest of the state between August 30 2020 and February 8 2023.

Roussev, Dzhambazov and Ivanova were previously charged in February 2023 with possession of false identity documents with improper intention under section 4 of the Identity Documents Act 2010.

The defendants spoke only to confirm their names and dates of birth. 

Tanweer Ikram, deputy senior district judge at Westminster magistrates’ court, told the five defendants that their case would now be sent to London’s Old Bailey for a hearing on October 13.