Balkans | The woman who ran a sewing shop in Greece turned out to be a Russian agent

Greece’s National Intelligence Service (EYP) claimed that an agent had been identified operating covertly in the country since 2018.

In the news of the Greek ERT agency, it was announced that the spy, the owner of the shop where knitting materials and handicrafts were sold in the Pangrati district of Athens, used the name “Maria Tsala”.

It was noted that the real name of the Russian woman, whom the Greek Intelligence Organization (EYP) decided to act on behalf of a foreign country’s intelligence agency, is “Irina As”.

He stated that the spy owned a shop that sold knitting and handcrafted items and presented herself as a photographer, and that the child who died in 1991 was living in Greece and had information about her identity.

It was reported in the news that the first suspicions about the Russian spy began when it was understood that there was a discrepancy in the population registration documents, and it was reported that it had been determined that some pages in the register had been torn out and replaced with others. .

It was recorded that the woman living in the capital with a forged Greek identity was in the category of private spies known as “illegal”, and that the spies in this category worked for their intelligence units in different countries with other identities. People or children who lost their lives.

It is believed that the Russian spy left Greece in January at the invitation of Russia after the arrest of other members of the “illegal” group and went to this country.

Up to 10 years of spy training

Speaking to ERT, security expert Alexandros Niklan stated that spies in the “illegal” category receive 5 to 10 years of training and reach their goals in the long term, sometimes 25 years.

Two people arrested in Slovenia on charges of espionage

Two people were arrested in Slovenia in January on the grounds that they were spying for Russia.

In a statement from the Slovenian Intelligence and Security Agency (SOVA), two foreign nationals were reportedly caught spying for Russia, and the suspects introduced themselves as South American businessmen.

It was reported in the local media, that the Ljubljana District Prosecutor’s Office launched a espionage investigation against two people in December 2022, and that the investigation of the suspects “spied for the foreign intelligence agency” and “falsified documents” is still ongoing. .

TRT News