The cluttered Russian spy base run from Great Yarmouth guesthouse

A former Great Yarmouth guesthouse has been revealed as a base for Bulgarian spies who were carrying out undercover work across Europe for Russia.

A group of six Bulgarians living in the UK have been convicted of being part of the spying operation across Europe on behalf of Russia.

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Following a three-month trial at the Old Bailey, two women and a man were found guilty of conspiring to obtain information intended to be directly or indirectly useful to Russia.

Three other men pleaded guilty to Official Secrets Act charges before the trial started.

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “These convictions have been achieved as the result of an extremely complex investigation into a group that was carrying out sophisticated surveillance operations in the UK, and in Europe, on behalf of the Russian state.

Bizer Maksimov Dzhambazov, 43, of Harrow, north London

Orlin Roussev, 46, of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk

Ivan Iliev Stoyanov, 33, of Greenford, west London

“This case is a clear example of the increasing amount of state threat casework we are dealing with in the UK - particularly linked to Russia. It also highlights a relatively new phenomenon whereby espionage is being ‘outsourced’ by certain states.

“While the outsourcing of espionage activity might suggest that recent efforts by the UK to thwart direct Russian activity have been effective, it means that we also have to guard against this new kind of emerging threat.

Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev, 39, of Acton, west London

Katrin Nikolayeva Ivanova, 33, of Harrow, north London

Vanya Nikolaveva Gaberova, 30, of Euston, north London.

“But regardless of the form the threat takes, this investigation shows that we will take action to identify and disrupt any such activity that puts UK national security and the safety of the public at risk.”

The court heard that detectives from the Met’s Counter terrorism Command sifted through more than 200,000 messages and seized hundreds of items after a co-ordinated series of raids and arrests were carried out on 8 February 2023.

In particular, the 33-room former Haydee hotel belonging to Orlin Roussev was found to contain items, including sophisticated spying equipment such as listening devices, concealed cameras and a fake ID card printer.

Through their investigation, detectives identified that Roussev, who was leading the group, was in direct contact with Jan Marsalek - an Austrian national who, in turn, was identified as working with the Russian intelligence services.

The investigation team identified six core spying ‘plots’ the group were involved in. This included activity that targeted two investigative journalists who were seen as reporting stories contrary to the interests of the Russian state.

A former senior Kazakh politician who lived in the UK was also targeted, and the group planned to stage protests at the Kazakhstan embassy in London. Both operations were part of an elaborate plan to help the Russia state gain favour with Kazakhstan.

The group also carried out surveillance at a US military site in Germany, where they believed Ukrainian soldiers were being trained.

Another man who was designated as a "foreign agent" by Russia was also targeted by the group during surveillance operations in Montenegro.

Sifting through thousands of messages, and then matching this up with physical travel, financial statements and surveillance reports and footage, meant detectives were able to build up a compelling picture of the group’s activity, as well as identify those involved and their roles within the group.

Officers found that Roussev was directing the group’s activity, and was receiving tasks through his contact with Marsalak. Dzambaszov was effectively the second in command.

The other four were all found to be involved in the execution of various espionage and surveillance activities across the UK and Europe in relation to the six plots identified by detectives.

Ivanova, Gaberova and Ivanchev were all found guilty of conspiracy to spy, contrary to Section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 after a three-month trial at the Old Bailey

Roussev and Dzhambazov pleaded guilty before the trial started to conspiracy to spy, contrary to Section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977.

Stoyanov pleaded guilty before the trial to spying, contrary to section 1(1)(c) of the Official Secrets Act 1911.

The group will be sentenced at the Old Bailey in May.