Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, agent of the GRU, Russian military intelligence, under the name of Viktor Muller Ferreira, was the “favorite of the teacher” and was identified when trying to access the International Criminal Court (ICC) as an intern.
Before applying for an internship at the ICC, the 36-year-old spent years building his false identity. A document published by the Dutch intelligence services, believed to have been written by Cherkasov himself, described the entire fictional biography of Viktor Muller Ferreira, born in 1989 in Rio de Janeirowith details like a close relationship with an aunt and a platonic crush on a geography teacher.
In 2014, the agent began his studies in the field of political science at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. After graduating in 2018, he traveled to the United States to pursue a master’s degree at the renowned Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
At SAIS, Cherkasov became popular with students and teachers. “He was the professor’s favorite,” one of his former colleagues told CNN. “I never suspected (that he was a spy).”
His accent, however, raised questions among colleagues, one even asked him directly if he was Russian. “Viktor” immediately left the conversation, “looking back, that was a ‘warning sign,’” this student said.
His excellent academic performance and good relationship with the professors earned the “Brazilian” a letter of recommendation from one of the professors, who taught classes on genocide, to an internship at the Court of The Hague.
Upon arrival in the Netherlands, where the internship was to begin, the Dutch authorities denied Cherkasov entry on the grounds that he was a “potentially high” threatbeing immediately deported to Brazil.
It’s unclear how agents in the European country discovered the true identity of the Russian agent, however, former US Secret Service officials told CNN it’s not uncommon to remotely follow some identified spies to reach a network. larger. Therefore, it is most likely that that the US has provided information about “Muller” to the Netherlands prior to his arrival in the country.
EITHER access to documents related to investigations of possible war crimes committed by Russia in 2008, in Georgia, and in 2022, in Ukraine, it would be the main objective of “Muller”, the Dutch authorities suspect.
“If this person had been given the opportunity to actually work at the ICC, he could have collected information, he could have erased evidence and he could have had access to digital systems,” explains the Dutch service. “For these reasons, secret access to ICC information would be very valuable to the Russians.”
The International Criminal Court said it was “very grateful to the Netherlands for this important operation and, in general, for exposing security threats”.
In Brazil, the agent continued to live as Viktor Muller Ferreira for some time, until he was detained by Brazilian police for using false documents. He currently remains in custody awaiting trial.
Source: Observadora
