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US student from Brazil turns out to be Russian spy

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The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 30th (local time) that a Brazilian student who lived in Washington DC for 10 years was revealed to be a Russian spy.

Sergey Cherkasov, a Russian spy from Kaliningrad, lived as a fictional character for nearly 10 years, living as Victor Muller Pereira, according to an indictment filed by the US Department of Justice in federal court on the 24th. He was charged with illegal foreign agent activity and several counts of bank, money transfer and visa fraud.

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In 2018, he entered Johns Hopkins University’s Master’s degree in International Relations. After his graduation, he was scheduled to begin a six-month internship at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands.

But the FBI leaked the information to the Dutch authorities. Dutch authorities denied him entry and put him on a plane to Brazil. He was arrested upon arrival in Brazil. Sergei Cherkasov is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence for false identity and document fraud.

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The WP evaluated that the revelation revealed serious flaws in Russian intelligence services. According to court records and security authorities, authorities inspected Cherkasov’s computer and other devices and found numerous evidence, including emails and messages addressed to Russian officials, records of illicit money transfers, and notes about his fictional life.

Meanwhile, Russia has denied that Sergei Cherkasov was a spy. Russia claimed he was neither a student nor an undercover agent and a wanted heroin trafficker who fled Russia to avoid prison. And asked to extradite him from Brazil to Russia.

Sergey Cherkasov claimed early in the investigation that he was Victor Muller Ferreira and that authorities were mistaken. However, he later admitted that he was Russian, in the hope that it might help get his sentence commuted. And fearing his punishment for his petty crime, he even made his tearful confession that he had left Russia.

Dutch authorities have issued an unusual press release about Sergei Cherkasov. Authorities said the decision to make the disclosure was part of an effort to expose Russia’s activities and draw the attention of allied governments to the threat of illegal immigrants.

Eight months after his arrest, Sergei Cherkasov is still in prison. Brazil’s Supreme Court recently provisionally granted Russia’s extradition request. With Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov scheduled to visit Brazil at the end of April, Russia is expected to find a way to release Cherkasov.

Source: Donga

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