Interpol's most wanted man who is accused of running British spy ring for ... trends now
A fugitive Wirecard executive used compromised intelligence operatives in Austria to spy on citizens in Europe and plot assassinations using Russian hitmen, according to shocking new claims based on evidence obtained by British Intelligence.
Jan Marsalek, the former COO of defunct German payment processor Wirecard, is alleged to have helped coordinate a group of spies who planned abductions on UK soil, prosecutors told Southwark Crown Court in London in September last year.
But new allegations contained in an Austrian police report for the arrest of a former Austrian police officer claim that Marsalek was not only compromised by Russia - but may have been one of the Kremlin's top spies in Europe.
The 86-page warrant claims that the 44-year-old commissioned police official Egisto Ott and top Austrian security official Martin Weiss to enable undercover work for Russian intelligence operating in Europe over a period of several years.
The allegations add to speculation that Wirecard, which collapsed after some 1.9bn euros went 'missing', may have been used as a 'shadow financial network to pay and facilitate Russian undercover operations', according to the Financial Times, which has closely documented allegations of malpractice in a series of investigations.
Jan Marsalek, 43, helped coordinate a group of spies who planned abductions on UK soil, prosecutors told a stunned public gallery at Southwark Crown Court in London on Tuesday
The former businessman is said to have acted as a 'tasker' for five spies in the UK. They include Vanya Gaberova, 29, (left) and 31-year-old Ivan Stoyanov (right)
Marsalek is now believed to be hiding in Russia under the protection of the GRU - the feared military intelligence agency tasked with carrying out sabotage and assassinations on foreign soil - having fled Europe with help from his network.
Amid mounting allegations against the former COO, a report published by various European outlets last month suggested he could have been compromised by Russia as early as 2014.
They claimed Marsalek had been compromised
