On Monday, the Brazilian citizen was arrested on his way to work at the University of Tromsø, suspected of being a Russian spy with a false identity. He is now charged with illegal intelligence. Until now, he has been suspected of illegal intelligence that could damage fundamental national interests, and of illegal intelligence that could damage the security interests of other states. PST believes the man is a so-called “illegalist”, i.e. a person who has built up an identity as an ordinary citizen, but who quietly works for foreign intelligence. According to PST, the man has pretended to be a Brazilian citizen, but is actually Russian and works for one of the Russian intelligence services. news has been in contact with the man’s defender Thomas Hansen, who says he has not yet been informed of the charge, and will not comment on anything until he has had it confirmed. Denies criminal responsibility The 37-year-old visiting researcher at UiT was detained on Tuesday pending extradition from Norway. Nord-Troms and Senja district court indicated that there were concrete grounds for fearing that the man would evade deportation, and that he had had his residence permit revoked in Norway. The man did not appeal the court decision on the detention. To detain is to put a person in custody, not as punishment, but as a security measure undertaken by the authorities. Defense attorney Thomas Hansen stated that the man will accept being deported from Norway, if it is decided. The accused has previously denied criminal guilt, according to his defender. The man is adamant that he is not a Russian spy, but a Brazilian citizen who came to Norway to be a researcher at the university. Work with social security and hybrid warfare The man was a visiting researcher at UiT where he was part of the research group “The Gray Zone”. The group deals with topics such as social security, preparedness and hybrid threats. Group leader for the project is security researcher Gunhild Hoogensen Gjørv, who told news earlier this week that the man himself contacted the university. – He came to us because of his interest in larger questions about security in the north, she said. According to Gjørv, the man has gone through the usual procedures to get a place at the university. There is nothing abnormal about the way the man approached the university. Nor should he have behaved suspiciously in a way that was visible to the colleagues news has been in contact with so far.
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PST charges spy suspect in Tromsø with illegal intelligence – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
