The FBI has arrested a Russian citizen in the Bronx for allegedly gathering economic intelligence and trying to recruit New York residents.
A complaint released today claims that Evgeny Buryakov was posing as a Manhattan banker while he conspired with others to collect and transmit economic information back to the Russian Federation’s Foreign Intelligence Service, the SVR.
— FBI New York (@NewYorkFBI) January 26, 2015
Buryakov, also referred to in the complaint as “Zhenya,” was named along with Igor Sporyeshev and Victor Podobny as part of an alleged spy ring. The latter two are no longer in the U.S., and have diplomatic immunity against arrest as Sporyeshev has been a Russian trade representative and Podobny was a Russian attache to the U.N.
A statement from the Attorney General says that Buryakov was in the U.S. under “non-official cover”; that is, he was working as a private citizen in the banking sector and, in violation of federal law, never identified himself as an agent of the Russian Federation.
“These charges demonstrate our firm commitment to combating attempts by covert agents to illegally gather intelligence and recruit spies within the United States,” Holder said.
