One of the world’s most wanted men who ran a spy ring in Britain has been spotted strolling with his partner through Moscow.
Jan Marsalek went on the run from Interpol five years ago and cooperates closely with Russia’s FSB and GRU secret services.
The fugitive tech boss, 45, went on the run in 2020 after his company, Wirecard, collapsed owing £1.6billion.
He is wanted for fraud and is being investigated for espionage in several European countries.
But he hadn’t been spotted at all until recently, after Russian investigative site The Insider tracked his movements using mobile phone data and CCTV.
Marsalek has been pictured walking hand-in-hand with his partner through the Russian capital, having received a hair transplant and plastic surgery to alter his appearance.
It’s only been four months since members of his UK-based spy ring were jailed for more than 50 years between them.
While Austrian-born Marsalek remains at large, beautician Vanya Gaberova, 30, decorator Tihomir Ivanchev, 39, and lab technician Katrin Ivanova, 33, were all convicted of conspiring to spy for Russia.
Roussev, 46, his lieutenant, Biser Dzhambazov, 43, and Ivan Stoyanov, 32, earlier pleaded guilty to charges under the Official Secrets Act.
Thousands of messages between Marsalek and Orlin Roussev, who ran the ring from a house in Great Yarmouth, revealed plans to kidnap and murder enemies of Vladimir Putin.
Marsalek had been working for the Kremlin for at least a decade, but fled to Russia when Wirecard’s fraud was exposed.
Since going into hiding in Russia he started to learn the language from fellow intelligence operative Tatiana Spiridonova, 41 – the woman he was caught on camera holding hands with.
Last December, investigative journalists found Marsalek travelling from Moscow to St Petersburg as Alexander Schmidt – one of eight or more false identities.
He is also known to have visited close to the front line in the war against Ukraine – and visited occupied Crimea no less than five times – while having an office near the FSB’s Lubyanka headquarters.
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