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| Europe |
| With the Most Dangerous Operation in the History of Sweden, Russian Espionage Operations Hang Over the Scandinavian Countries |
| 2023-02-01 |
| [ALESTIKLAL.NET] On January 19, a Swedish court sentenced a person accused of espionage to life imprisonment, and his brother to ten years, after they were charged with carrying out dangerous espionage operations for Russian intelligence. Swedish television reported that the first defendant was Peyman Kia (42 years old). He had worked in both the Swedish Civil Intelligence Service and the Swedish Military Intelligence, and he also sold secret documents to his colleagues in Russian intelligence, according to the channel. Peyman Kia received a life sentence, while his younger brother (Payam, 35) was sentenced to ten years in prison on charges of being responsible for communicating with the Russian security apparatus. Judge Mans Wigen, who issued the two rulings, considered that what happened was "dangerous espionage" and that this was a very serious crime and a threat to the system. The older brother committed an act classified as one of the most dangerous acts of espionage, causing a great threat to the security of the country. GREATEST THREAT In interpreting the ruling, the judge referred to what was reported by the local media in Sweden about information that was transferred to the Russian intelligence service, which posed the greatest threat to Sweden's security over recent decades. The press circulated information about the handing over of a member of the Swedish security service to Russian intelligence about 90 documents of dangerous content without elaborating on the details of what those documents contained. The former Public Prosecutor in Sweden, Mats Ljungqvist, considered, in statements to the Swedish channel SVT, that the court briefing was completely confidential due to the seriousness of the case, as the materials available to the Swedish agent were among the most confidential of all. Despite this, information about the case remained surrounded by great ambiguity and scarcity, but it was found that the security service in Sweden carried out a major security operation in September 2021, which led to the arrest of the older brother. Later on, his brother was arrested with accusations of espionage for Russia. For his part, the journalist responsible for covering legal issues on Swedish TV, Lars-Erik Topper, pointed out that despite the fact that the trial was not made public, one piece of information from the investigation with the older brother (who was working in the civil and military security services in Sweden) indicates that he was dealing with knowledge of the entire staff list is of the Swedish intelligence's device. He added to the channel that it certainly could pose a great threat to Sweden's security, and it could also cause serious damage to the Swedish kingdom's security if these documents ended up in the hands of a foreign power. RUSSIAN SPIES Despite the mystery surrounding the case, it seems that espionage continued for years before it was discovered, which constitutes a dilemma for Swedish intelligence. According to the local press, the older brother, while working in the security of his country, was not discovered until late. Swedish intelligence suspected that there was a spy who provided Russia with information, and as a result, it arrested the agent who had been placed under suspicion since 2017. His house was carefully searched and eavesdropped on, and his phone and the family's bank accounts were searched, until the Swedish intelligence was able to decipher the messages and decrypt CDs, which ultimately led to his arrest in 2021. The most important question raised by the press and specialists after the verdict was about the motives that made the two Swedes spy for the benefit of the Russians—security sources and specialists in espionage cases reveal that they are "great financial motives." The security expert in risk analysis, Tony Ingerson, considered that what happened was the most dangerous and worst penetration and espionage operation in the history of the Swedish security services. He added that Sweden needs years to repair the damage and fill the gaps that allowed this level of leakage of dangerous documents and information. |
| Posted by:Fred |