Espionage case revealed in Greece – Irena S. and the hidden life

"Maria Tsalla": With the name of an infant who died in 1991, the Russian spy - How the EYP "exposed" her

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None of those who knew her in Greece imagined that "Maria T." who ran a small handicraft and knitting shop in Pagrati as of 2019, was actually a Russian spy whose program name is 'Irina AS'.

"The National Intelligence Service made an important revelation of the way of action and penetration of foreign services in our country. Specifically, investigations systematically carried out by the EYP, following the information it collected, proved that the alleged "Maria T.", who in recent years claimed to be Greek and was active as a photographer and owner of a craft and knitting shop in Athens, with Greek citizenship and identity since 2018, in fact she is the foreign national "Irina AS", who was operating in our country under "deep cover"" states the announcement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

How did he come to Greece?

"Maria T", as she was known here in Greece, has been in our country since 2018 and introduced herself as a child of immigrants from Moscow. After renting an apartment in an apartment building in Pagrati, a year later she opened a handicraft and knitting shop next to the apartment building. According to what SKAI reported in the main news bulletin, "Maria T." came to Greece using a forged passport that corresponded to a person living in Latin America. In 2018 she issued a birth certificate using the details of an infant who died in childbirth with a birth and death date of December 1991.

She is described by the neighbors as a very active and social woman who, in addition to her shop, was engaged in amateur photography, while her presence on social media was also strong.

How EYP reached its tracks

The EYP started the investigation for "Maria T" at the beginning of January after receiving information about her. It was found that the file of this woman was falsified. Immediately her photos were sent abroad and then the EYP received the information that it was a Russian spy named "Irina AS".

However, last January the woman was recalled to Russia as it seems there were suspicions that the Greek authorities were close to her tracks. In fact, according to the report, "Maria T." she was married to a Russian national who operated in a similar manner, i.e. he was also a spy in Brazil until early 2023.

However, according to the report, she seems to have considered her return to Greece almost certain, after she left leaving behind her personal belongings in the apartment she was renting in Pagrati, which are considered "leaf and feather" by the authorities.

The case of "Maria T." it is not the only one to surface in Europe as four identical cases have been revealed since 2022 in various European countries.

Source: skai.gr