Aussie couple arrested and charged with spying for Russia
An army private in the Australian Defence Force and her husband have been arrested after being accused of spying for the Russians.
The Australian Federal Police arrested the 40-year-old soldier Kira Korolev and her 62-year-old labourer husband Igor Korolev at their Brisbane home on Thursday morning.
They have been charged with preparing for an espionage offence.
The woman has been employed by the ADF for several years as an information systems technician.
It is alleged the Russian-born Australian citizens worked together to obtain sensitive information.
AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said the couple have been living in Australia for more than a decade after the woman received her citizenship in 2016, with her husband also becoming a citizen in 2020.
The woman is accused of not declaring her travels to Russia during long-term leave from the ADF since 2023, both with and without her husband.
While her husband remained in Australia, the woman is accused of instructing the man to log into her official work account and access information to send to her private email while she was in Russia.
It is alleged this information related to Australia’s national security interests and was accessed a number of times with the intent of passing it on to Russian authorities.
“Western democracies, including Australia, are being targeted by state actors, but Australia’s intelligence and law enforcement agencies have the laws, capability and tradecraft to identify these spies and those seeking to undermine Australia’s interests,” Kershaw said on Friday.
“So my direct warning is this, we know who you are. You are likely already exposed.”
It is unknown if the information was passed on, or what the pair did while overseas, however the investigation is continuing.
“Whether that information was handed over remains a key focus of our investigation,” Kershaw said. “Currently no significant compromise has been identified.”
ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess said the “espionage threat is real”.
“Multiple countries are seeking to steal Australia’s secrets. We cannot be naive and we cannot be complacent,” Burgess said.
“Espionage is not some quaint Cold War notion. Espionage damages our economy and degrades our strategic advantage. It has catastrophic real-world consequences. Foreign intelligence services are capable, determined and patient."
“They play the long game. The problem for them is ASIO does too,” he said.
Image credits: ADF