Two Russian-born Australians have been arrested and charged with spying for Russia as part of a “sophisticated” law enforcement operation codenamed BURGAZADA.
They include a 40-year-old woman, a private in the Australian Defense Force (ADF), and her husband, a 62-year-old self-employed worker. Media reports there is identified them as Kira Korolev and Igor Korolev, respectively, noting that they had been in Australia for more than ten years.
The couple were arrested at their home in the Brisbane suburb of Everton Park on July 11, 2024, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a statement. They were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit espionage, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
“This is the first case in which an espionage offense has been prosecuted in Australia since the introduction of new laws by the Commonwealth in 2018,” AFP reports. said.
Federal law enforcement alleges the pair conspired to obtain classified information after the woman traveled to Russia while on long-term leave from the ADF from 2023.
She is said to have instructed her husband, who remained in Australia, to log into her official work account and instructed him to access specific information and send it directly to her personal email account while she was overseas.
“The woman’s ADF account credentials were used on several occasions to access sensitive ADF information with the intention of passing it on to the Russian authorities,” AFP said.
While the exact documents accessed have not been disclosed, the AFP said they relate to Australia’s national security interests. The investigation into whether the information was passed on to Russia is ongoing.
“Espionage is an insidious crime and at a time of global instability, state actors have stepped up their efforts to obtain information held by Western democracies, including Australia,” AFP Commissioner Rhys Kershaw said.
“Espionage is not a victimless crime. It can affect Australia’s sovereignty, security and way of life.”
The arrests marked the third time individuals have been charged with espionage or foreign interference-related crimes since they were included in the Criminal Code Act 1995.
Last April, a 55-year-old man from New South Wales is charged with providing information about Australia’s “defence, economy and national security” to two individuals linked to foreign intelligence agencies suspected of intelligence-gathering activities.
Then in late February 2024, a 68-year-old man from Melbourne was awarded to two years and nine months in prison for attempting to influence a federal parliamentarian on behalf of a foreign government.
Mike Burgess, Director General of Security at the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO), said the constant threat of espionage is “real” and that “several countries are seeking to steal Australia’s secrets”.
