The Court of Appeal trial of Peyman Kia and Payam Kia is reaching its conclusion, with a senior analyst from Sweden’s security police organization, Säpo, testifying about Russian intelligence operations in the country in the eighth day of the trial. The analyst detailed how Russia recruits spies, and explained that all three Russian intelligence services – GRU, SVR and FSB – have agents at the embassy and trade delegation in Stockholm. These agents gather intelligence on Swedish politics, economy, defense capabilities and relationships with other countries, and also procure sensitive technology. The recruitment of spies is a patient process that can last for several years, during which a “recruitment ladder” is established. The Kremlin, Putin, and the Russian Security Council initiate the process; intelligence officers then identify targets and initiate contact, building relationships with them over time in order to acquire information. Peyman Kia and Payam Kia have been charged with aggravated espionage and unauthorized position with secret information on behalf of the GRU, with Peyman Kia sentenced to life imprisonment and Payam Kia to 9 years and 10 months in prison. The brothers are appealing their verdict.
The Court of Appeal hearing against Peyman Kia, 42, and Payam Kia, 35, is coming to an end.
On Wednesday, the eighth and penultimate day of the trial, a senior Säpo analyst testified about Russian intelligence operations in Sweden and how the country recruits spies.
The analyst, who was also heard in the district court, gave a brief account of the Russian intelligence services GRU, SVR and FSB – and stated that all three have agents at the Russian embassy and trade delegation in Stockholm. Some operate openly as intelligence officers, others covertly under diplomatic cover.
– They gather intelligence about Swedish politics, economy, defense capabilities and relations with other countries. They also engage in technology procurement and acquire sensitive technology from companies and universities, says Säpo’s analyst.
Recruitment ladder
– The intelligence services are just a tool. The Kremlin, Putin and the Russian Security Council are the original purchasers, and they have different information needs to be able to make decisions about, for example, foreign policy.
The recruitment of spies is described as a patient process, where a so-called recruitment ladder can last for several years. According to the analyst, Russia stands out by working very long-term and has its sights set on, among other things, the security services.
A recruitment usually begins with an analysis where intelligence officers on site in Stockholm identify what answers they need and then start searching for targets who can rely on the right information.
– When you find suitable sources, you start to study them in more detail. You look at what access they have to information and what vulnerabilities they have that could be a motive for cooperation.
Builds friendship relationship
In the next step, a first contact is made, for example by an agent under civilian cover asking questions about a special area. Gradually, a kind of friendship is built up – a phase that may last this year.
Finally, when you think you know your target well enough, the open question comes: Would they consider working for Russia?
Another type of spies, according to the analyst, are so-called “walk-ins”, who themselves contact foreign intelligence services with offers to sell information. Several of the most famous spy cases, for example the Swede Stig Bergling, belong to this latter category.
On whose initiative Peyman Kia acted is still unclear.
The final day of the trial is scheduled for April 18.
Drawing from the trial against the brothers Peyman Kia (gray jacket, left) and Payam Kia (green shirt), convicted in the district court of having spied on Sweden for the Russian intelligence service GRU. Archive image. Photo: Anders Humlebo/TT
In September 2021, Säpo arrests a man in Uppsala on suspicion of gross unauthorized position with secret information. He is at the time a senior manager at the Swedish Food Agency.
It turns out that he previously worked at Säpo and the Military Intelligence and Security Service, Must.
In November of the same year, the man’s younger brother was arrested on suspicion of aggravated espionage. At the same time, suspicions against the older brother intensify. According to the prosecutor, the crimes were committed between 2011 and 2021.
On November 11, 2022, the brothers Peyman Kia, 45, and Payam Kia, 35, are charged on suspicion of aggravated espionage on behalf of the Russian intelligence service GRU. The elderly person is also charged with gross unauthorized position with secret information. Both deny wrongdoing.
According to the indictment, the brothers have sold secret information to Russia that Peyman Kia came across during his time at Säpo and Must. Payam Kia is said to have been the one who managed the direct contacts with the GRU.
In January 2023, the verdict falls against the brothers. Peyman Kia is sentenced to life imprisonment for aggravated espionage and unauthorized position with a secret mission. Payam Kia is sentenced to 9 years and 10 months in prison.
The brothers are appealing the verdict. Before the appeal court hearing, Peyman Kia admits that he sold information to the GRU. However, he claims that it was mostly false information. Even Payam Kia admits in the Court of Appeal that he handed over envelopes and received payment from Russia, but denies espionage.
The Main Directorate of Intelligence (GRU) is Russia’s military intelligence service. The GRU was founded in 1942 and is subordinate to the Ministry of Defence. During World War II, the GRU devoted itself to overseeing sabotage and resistance movements fighting the Nazis. Today, GRU conducts its activities across large parts of the world.
The Swedes Stig Wennerström and Stig Bergling, protagonists in Sweden’s two biggest spy scandals, both spied on behalf of the GRU.
The Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation (SVR) is Russia’s civilian foreign intelligence service and reports to the President. The SVR is the successor to the Soviet intelligence service KGB. When the KGB was disbanded in connection with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the SVR (foreign) and the FSB (domestic) were formed.
In 2021, a 47-year-old consultant was sentenced to three years in prison for spying on Volvo and Scania on behalf of Russia. According to the prosecutor, the contact with the man took place via an SVR agent.
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) is Russia’s internal security service and reports to the President. The FSB, like the SVR, is the successor to the KGB. The FSB is engaged in, among other things, counter-espionage, surveillance and counter-terrorism. The FSB acts within Russia’s borders and in the country’s immediate area, including Ukraine and the Baltics.