A Russian man is facing treason charges after allegedly offering confidential information to intelligence officers from New Zealand, a member of the notorious ‘Five Eyes’.
The suspect, who is in his mid-50s, was identified by the Federal Security Service (FSB) as a resident of Khabarovsk in eastern Russia. He was arrested after reportedly providing “information that can be used to harm Russian security,” the agency said in a statement on Monday. New Zealand is a member of the Five Eyes, a Western intelligence-sharing alliance, where it works closely with the US, UK, Australia and Canada.
According to Russian counter-espionage authorities, the New Zealanders were interested in classified information regarding military cooperation with nations in the Asia-Pacific region.
The FSB said the suspect had betrayed Russia for financial reasons. Officers who conducted a search at his residence found stacks of US banknotes stored in a bank bag, with the sum valued in the tens of thousands of dollars.
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